Weddingbee

Since no clever tea inspired idea came to mind as our card collection device, we turned to the tried and true route of birdcages. They are not only classy and decorative, but for us they come with extra incentives. FFIL happens to have two golden antique birdcages, one of which housed a pet bird in the mister’s home when he was a child. This translates to the following bonuses: 1. no purchase necessary (free and green), 2. color coordinating, 3. vintage coolness, and 4. added personal history.

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I knew early on that I did not want a fancy dinner after the rehearsal, and thank goodness the FH agrees. The night before the big event, all I want to do is to hang out and enjoy myself in the most laid back manner possible, with those closest to us. We considered some restaurants at first with food options like buffets, Mongolian BBQ, and Korean BBQ thinking they would be a little more interactive than the standard sit down dinner. But in the back of my mind the ideal was always having gourmet pizza and sandwiches poolside.

In a conversation about our search for the ideal after rehearsal venue with one of my co-workers, he suggested this place:

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I found this fantastic wedding captured by Our Labor of Love, via Meg from A Practical Wedding. Meg already did a great job wording the feelings invoked in me when I first saw the pics, so I won’t repeat them, but I just can’t resist sharing this with you all. This wedding has all the good stuff great weddings are made of, and then some.

Fabulous details:

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As someone who considers herself relatively levelheaded, organized, tolerant, and not big on drama, I never guessed that planning a wedding would be this taxing. I mean, of course I realized there are lots to do. But armed with nearly 2 years of planning time along with having a super helpful and considerate fiancé, I would never have thought the making of this happy event could bring me to tears at all, let alone often.

I had never dreamed of weddings before getting engaged. I was actually not expecting to ever be married before the mister popped the question. Naturally, I have no expectations for our wedding to be a perfect day or the best day of our lives. With such little room for disappointment, you’d think wedding planning would be easy as a cake. But nope! There’s no cake, no frosting, not even a cupcake liner. I stress constantly about the to-do list, and I freak out every time someone makes the tiniest request. It’s as if the bling on my finger has transformed me into this crybaby that even I don’t recognize.
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I love weddings with unusual elements that show off the couple’s personalities and interests. They often bring in the fun and the funky that make a wedding feel personal and true. After all, the people coming to your wedding should (at least mostly) be people who enjoy and appreciate the real you, right?

I suppose there are times and places where a level of formality is necessary or expected, and to many people, a wedding is one of those times. For that reason, we didn’t get a lot of buy-ins for our over abundant, non-standard-issue ideas at the beginning stages of wedding planning. I learned though, that those who love you, stick around for your crazy @$$ regardless of how ridiculous they sometimes think you are.

Case in point - despite having known my unconventional ways for 17 years, my MOH shook her head with disapproval when I told her about the ring pillow alternative I wanted:

(Image Source)

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The wish bowl concept is nothing new, and here is ours, we just used a pot instead. Teapot, to be exact:

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One of the most interesting results of the union between the mister and I is our integration into each other’s families. We are fortunate that even though it took a bit of warming up from both sides at the beginning, we do get along with each other’s supporting casts rather well.

We’re both sort of a novelty to the other’s circles, with neither of our families having members outside our own race. For him, the challenge was getting used to the food and all the fingers pointing at him amongst the Chinese conversation. He got lucky, however, since his quick pick up of the game of mahjong won over just about everyone in a snap.

The mister’s friends and family are fairly accommodating. They are an educated and understanding group, comprehending the idea that people are just people, and that Americans include folks from many races. Somehow though, perhaps due to the lack of diversity in their smaller town, recognizing that I am as American as them proves to be difficult.
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Reader Guilty Secret pulls off the bridal look amazingly well in this bridesmaid dress, doesn’t she? Oh yeah, you heard right, bridesmaid dress. Pure geniusness. Details on her big triumph are shown on her post HERE.

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You know how amusement parks and fairs always have vendors selling glowing stuff of all sorts after dark, from neon glow sticks to blinking yo-yos? Yeah, I was one of those kids who got to envy everyone else’s glow instead of enjoying it firsthand. Practicality was taught at a young age in my family, and the ROI of glowing items just don’t quite make the cut with such short lived glory. While the lesson was well learned, it must have left me with a bit of a void, which I am apparently trying to fill by ordering enough glowing thingamabobs to make up for my entire childhood.

Let me present to you, the glowing ice cube (in tea, of course):

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Our reception includes many elements that are not common in weddings. To make sure our guests don’t miss a beat, they will be given this piece of stationery that shows the location and times of all the ‘events and attractions’. It’s a trifold that opens up to a map of the venue, with the ceremony program and menus on the back. (Note: pictures are of drafts, work is still in progress)
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