Miss Aardvark, Beaver Dam, WIAge and Occupation: 23, Assistant Product ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Business Analyst Engagement Date: May 28th, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: St. Philip Catholic Church/Arcadia Brewing Co.About Me: I am a resourceful lady who love surprises and adventure. At the same time, I value traditions, family and friends. I like to make crafty messes, sometimes, clean them up, and do pretty much anything outdoors. The Mister and I are pretty avid cyclists---we have nine bikes in our home right now...and one motorcycle! We both enjoy eating food we can't pronounce (language doesn't really matter) and going places we've never been. We currently reside in rural Wisconsin, enjoying the cheese and beer it has to offer, and getting outside whenever we can!
I just got an email of the menu from our contact at Arcadia. All I can say is YUM-O. I don’t know how I…rather, Mr. Aardvark and I are going to pick and choose from this list! Seriously!
We are having a buffet style dinner and are picking food off of the regular menu (the menu they have while they are a restaurant and not my wedding reception venue).
One of the appetizers is called the “Garden and Goat Quesadilla” and it’s described as having pesto, mushroom, and fresh salsa.
Umm, hello? That sounds amazing! Also I love the name so that will probs have to be on our “For Sure” list. Not into goat cheese? They have AMAZING pepperoni rolls that I could eat all.day.long.
Their pulled pork and brisket are also STUPENDOUS! I am not really sure how I will choose one type of BBQ…maybe I will have to flip a coin.
But best of all are their pizzas! So good, and so many choices… Now, I know you are thinking what I am thinking right now…Aardvark, pizza? At a wedding??? Surely this will happen:
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Miss Doe, Northern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 24, Real Estate AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 23, Recycling ManagerEngagement Date: December 25, 2010Wedding Date: May 2012Venue: Monte Verde InnAbout Me: I’m a Rat Pack fan and a Christmas nut that loves to read, good wine, cheesy ’80s movies and ’90s sitcoms. My wiener dog with an attitude problem and lazy basset hound are my constant source of entertainment. He's a hunter and I like cooking so it's not rare to see wild game on our dinner menu. Both of us were born and raised in a small historic farming town where our feet are still firmly planted. We have been together for nearly a decade and have shared many life experiences together, including birthdays that are only one day apart. We are two old souls that are creating our long-awaited wedding with loads of tradition that blends our two styles into rustic elegance in the foothills of Northern California.
For some reason I put off the search for an officiant for quite a long time, until it hit me that I was missing one of the most important vendors—the one involved in the reason that the entire wedding is taking place. We needed someone to marry us—but not just anyone.
Mr. Buck and I are both Christians, so it is very important to both of us to have a religious ceremony focused on our beliefs. Unfortunately, where we are getting married there were not many options. Our venue mainly had recommendations for judges, but we were looking for someone of faith to marry us. There are various pastors within the area, but I wanted something more than that. I was looking for someone that we could easily connect to.
In came the football coach.
I come from a town where high school football is huge. Think Kenny Chesney’s song, Boys of Fall.
Mrs. Candy Apple, Princeton Junction, NJ/ Seattle, WAAge and Occupation: 26, Project EditorFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, AttorneyEngagement Date: May 9, 2010Wedding Date: August 2011Venue: St. Joseph's Parish, Seattle Tennis ClubAbout Me: I am a Pacific Northwesterner, born and bred. I have lived in many cities---Santa Clara, Durham (England); Florence; Boston; Princeton Junction---but my heart will always be nestled up near the Cascades and Olympics, which is why we are holding our wedding there. I am a bookworm and a History nerd: I love that my life consists of books, books, and more books, since I work in Publishing! Recently, all waking time not consumed by work and my daily commute has been overtaken by wedding planning. Well, that, and watching Premier-League soccer. There is nothing I love more than a good Tana French mystery, traveling to new places, Anthropologie shopping sprees, Iittala dishware, Kate Spade shoes, impeccable typefaces (think: Archer), and a nice English ale (hellooo, Old Speckled Hen!). Oh, and did I mention my obsession with wedding blogs? Yeah, there’s that too. Join Mr. Candy Apple and me as we prep for our wedding, and, more importantly, our marriage!
I can honestly say that the past two and a half months have been the busiest, most insane months of my life. OK, OK, they might be trumped by the first few months of my life (getting pushed from a nice, cozy uterus out through a narrow dark passageway tends to be somewhat traumatic and chaotic), but seriously, it’s been close.
However, now that we have moved down to Virginia (wahoo!!) and have been on our honeymoon (double wahoo!! more on that later!), things are finally settling down a bit in the California household. Sort of. Anyway, I am now hoping to get back to blogging about some of the stuff leading up to our big day.
First up? My bachelorette party!
From the get-go, I knew that I only wanted my closest gals with me—the guest list was only me, my MOH (sister), and my three BMs. Since I live on the East Coast and the ladies are all on the West, it made planning a bit tricky. But my girls took the helm and, after some discussion, settled on a place near and dear to my heart for a lovely weekend getaway. Our destination? Victoria, B.C.!
Mrs. Knitting, TorontoAge and Occupation: 24, Student Recruitment Assistant
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Neuroscience PhD CandidateEngagement Date: October 2009Wedding Date: December 2010Venue: University of Toronto Faculty Club
About Me: I'm a pearl wearing, etiquette book reading Toronto girl who loves cooking and baking, museums, charm bracelets, and collecting books on Jackie Kennedy (a lot). I've been known to spend Sunday mornings at the antique market, Wednesday evenings at sister sushi dinners, and any bit of spare time reading. After six and a half years of many late night walks, watching DVDs together in bed, travelling to places like New York, and Tobermory, doing Sudokus together on the couch, lots of Indian food, the occasional yoga class, moving in together and so much more, Mr. Knitting and I are planning a cozy Christmasy (it's a word!), vintage wedding in Toronto complete with many DIY projects (eek!) and lots of help from our amazing group of family and friends.
I had so much fun putting together the playlists for our wedding. It meant that we got to listen to a lot of really meaningful songs that we really love throughout our cocktail hour, dinner, and dancing. Here’s a few examples.
“Little Jeannie” by Elton John:
“Little Jeannie” is my little sister’s “song,” so it was important to me to include it.
Mrs. Sunhat, Dyer, IN Age and Occupation: 32, Tax AccountantFiance's Age and Occupation: 35, Landscape ForemanEngagement Date: September 25, 2010Wedding Date: December 2011Venues: St. Andrew the Apostle, Fiesta PalaceAbout Me: I'm a Midwest girl who grew up in the country and now works in the big city! I love cooking, entertaining, reading (addicted to my Kindle) and going to the movies. I don't miss an episode of Hoarders and I start cleaning every time I watch! My profession doesn't call for much creativity so wedding planning has been a great outlet. Mr. Sunhat and I met online three years ago, cheer for rival MLB teams and share a home with our dog, Wrigley. We are planning a traditional, Polish, Catholic wedding with lots of DIY elements and some fun surprises. I'm so excited to be married on New Year's Eve and we can't wait to ring in the new year as husband and wife!
Miss Dalmatian, Nashville, TNAge and Occupation: 23, Pediatric NurseFiance's Age and Occupation: 23, Computer Engineer and Entrepreneur Engagement Date: April 13, 2011Wedding Date: May 2012Venue: Historic CedarwoodAbout Me: I am a Northern girl from Chicago who is planning a wedding filled with Southern charm in Nashville, Tennessee. I love dogs, the White Sox, Full House reruns, and anything with ruffles on it. Mr. Dalmatian is my computer-genius problem-solving fiance who is constantly teaching me new things and making me a better person. We live with our adopted pup Echo, who is very excited that his parents are getting married!
So, the hive has been abuzz about the idea of vintage handkerchiefs as a medium for totally stunning and totally unique save-the-dates and invitations. Miss Cheetah mentioned them here, Miss Biscuit mentioned them here, Miss Petit Four mentioned them here, and talk of this idea has been all over the boards!
Mrs. Waffle, AustinAge and Occupation: 31, Costumer/ArtistFiance's Age and Occupation: 33, AnimatorEngagement Date: July 27, 2010Wedding Date: June 2011Venue: Hummingbird HouseAbout Me: My life is pretty much spent in a sea of fabric, paint, sequins and drama. When I’m not working, I play on a trivia team, take Broadway dance classes, read, buy shoes, and occasionally geek out on video games. I am an American girl who loves all things British and Mr. Waffle is a Brit who loves all things American...I guess it was meant to be!
When my friend Blue would find herself at the end of a long evening and ready to go to bed, she would say that she was about to turn into a pumpkin. We started calling it “pumpkining” for short.
As the evening drew to a close, Mr. Waffle and I were definitely on our way to pumpkining. Mr Thrill started up our last dance music.
Miss Raccoon, IndianapolisAge and Occupation: 22, StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Graduate StudentEngagement Date: Christmas 2010Wedding Date: January 2012Venue: Catholic Church, Chateau Thomas WineryAbout Me: I'm a wholesome Midwestern girl, TV series junkie, professional shower singer, and Anglophile. I love my fiance, crock pot cooking, my cat Heepo, going for the gusto, and all things wedding. Mr. Raccoon is pretty sweet, too! He’s a mad scientist that loves to travel. We met my first night on campus and have been inseparable since.
If you have not already, I would like you to meet my NO SEW VEIL.
A series of events (which we will get into later) and sales at the local craft store led me to making my own veil. Read more…
Miss Ticket, Riverside, CAAge and Occupation: 25, Executive AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, HVAC TechnicianEngagement Date: November 14, 2010Wedding Date: October 2011Venue: Crestmore ManorAbout Me: I'm a lifelong So Cal gal, a chocoholic, a closet gamer, and a television enthusiast (love me some Vampire Diaries!) who adores playing in the kitchen and lives in flip flops. Mr. Ticket and I are best known for singing and dancing in the car, our World of Warcraft addiction, adoring food, crane game playing, and our general homebody ways. Oh, and GO STEELERS!
So there is one project that I alluded to and I’ve been stupidly excited about. It involves our flower baby. In case you forgot how cute she is, here’s a brief reminder.
Seeing as how she will only be 14 months old for our wedding and she’s still a touch wobbly when she walks long distances, we wanted to give her some help getting down the aisle. So we bought this…
Miss Fox, Washington DC/Havre de Grace, MDAge and Occupation: 26, Massage TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Field Support EngineerEngagement Date: April 18, 2010Wedding Date: June 2012Venue: Vandiver InnAbout Me: I’m a dancer turned massage therapist who was born and raised in New York. Alas, true love has brought me “south” where I still maintain my penchants for pretty shoes, wine, crossword puzzles, cherry blossoms, and the Mets. I own more sunglasses than a normal person should and don’t eat red meat (though I make up for it by eating my weight in sushi). I tend to be a big planner who likes to get things started early, but generally end up being indecisive and procrastinating when it comes down to it. I have a (not so) secret crush on Chris Carrabba, but my loyalty and love ultimately goes to the future hubs, of course! Together, my Foxy man and I love to discuss (read: debate) politics and current events, have Mario Kart and Scrabble duels, and just laugh. A lot. We’re hoping and planning for a laid back, fun, summery, rustic vibe to our June wedding that will be genuinely “us” – that is, if we finally make some decisions. Huzzah!
We agreed to meet up with Anni from Anni Cee Photography last Saturday morning bright and early (cough:after a late night out:cough) at our local farmer’s market to do a sort of “real life” shoot. It was a light year different from our original engagement shoot. Anni really wanted to catch the early morning sunlight, but it turned out to be a pretty dull and rainy day. No matter! This girl is amazing at what she does and the vibrant colors at the farmer’s market totally offset the dreary day. It also helped make me and Mr. Foxy more comfortable getting our pictures taken (OK who am I kidding, just Foxy. I’m a photo hussy.) since we already “knew” Anni. I’m telling you, it makes a difference!
So…enough jibber jabber. Here are some of my favorite shots!
Mrs. High Wire, DallasAge and Occupation: 23, Legal AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Director of CommunicationsEngagement Date: October 9, 2010Wedding Date: September 2011Venue: Clark GardensAbout Me: My loves include yoga, anything spicy, our eccentric cat, our rambunctious dog, and Mr. High Wire, of course! Like the steadiness act of the tightrope walker, this gal is busy balancing life while planning a wedding to the man of her dreams. We’re hosting a laid-back, vintage-inspired, bird themed wedding with heavy doses of love, good eats (did someone say tacos and margaritas?), and endless Texas charm. Mr. High Wire and I are so happy to have you along for the walk across the tight rope.
After being the laziest people on the entire planet (besides acting as crab paparazzi), we finally got some energy together and did a few of the free resort-provided activities.
Shopping Trip
We decided to participate in the shopping trip they offered for the day. However, when we arrived to board the bus, the staff member explained that the shopping trip would take us into the city of Negril, but the shops were owned by people who weren’t Jamaican and weren’t selling Jamaican goods. It was more like “made in China” type retail. An alternative option would be to walk two minutes down the road from the resort to the craft market if you wanted to buy local goods from the local population. There was an organized trip there once a week, but we could go right now if we wanted to. So, we joined up with one other couple, for safety’s sake, and headed down to the craft market.
Miss Doe, Northern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 24, Real Estate AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 23, Recycling ManagerEngagement Date: December 25, 2010Wedding Date: May 2012Venue: Monte Verde InnAbout Me: I’m a Rat Pack fan and a Christmas nut that loves to read, good wine, cheesy ’80s movies and ’90s sitcoms. My wiener dog with an attitude problem and lazy basset hound are my constant source of entertainment. He's a hunter and I like cooking so it's not rare to see wild game on our dinner menu. Both of us were born and raised in a small historic farming town where our feet are still firmly planted. We have been together for nearly a decade and have shared many life experiences together, including birthdays that are only one day apart. We are two old souls that are creating our long-awaited wedding with loads of tradition that blends our two styles into rustic elegance in the foothills of Northern California.
I wanted to use a heart hole punch instead of a plain circle one to make holes in our wish tags. The search for a heart shaped hole punch has proven to be less than fruitful. Most punches I found punched the heart upside-down, so I returned those. I came across another heart shaped hole punch made by Martha Stewart that looked as though it would be perfect. I scoped it out in the store and it did indeed punch the right side up.
You are thinking this is going to have a happy ending, right? That would be a big N-O. Unfortunately it punches an abnormally large heart. Who needs one that big?! Read more…
ClassifiedsFeature Launched: April 30, 2008About: A roundup of the best Weddingbee Classified listings.
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
