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I’ve been contemplating on how I can share my wedding day with you all. I don’t want to miss any details, and yet I don’t want to make it too long to read in one sitting. So I’ve decided to divvy it up in parts, and share my timeline with you as I go along. Creating a timeline was a headache and it took me two weeks of revising as I kept remembering things I had forgotten to add. Hopefully mine will make your planning go a tad smoother!
I strongly recommend creating one weeks in advance whether or not you have a coordinator…not only is it helpful for your vendors/bridesmaids/groomsmen (and the occasionally forgetful groom), but it kept my mind sane and I never had to wonder, “Did I forget to do something?” or “What am I supposed to do next? Where am I supposed to go?”
Morning of…
7:00 - Wake-up call for Bride, wear button-down shirt; gather overnight bag, emergency kit, purse, shoes/jewelry/veil
7:20 - BMs meet at Alice’s house
7:30 - BMs leave Cupertino to pick-up Bride; wear button-down shirts and bring dresses/shoes/makeup
…from the amazing Scott Robert. I love the colors and his creative use of overlays!
If you don’t mind the groom seeing you before the walk down the aisle, I highly recommend spending a couple of hours before the wedding taking pictures (while the hair/makeup is still fresh and the dress relatively unwrinkled), and then a mini one when the guests are gone. I wanted a few photographs where Mr.Tomato and I were completely relaxed and having fun, as you can see from the latter ones in the hotel room where we’re jumping on the bed and I’m posing in the bathtub (it had a “trash the dress” feel without me having to actually trash the dress!). 
In doing so, we were free to spend the majority of our “cocktail hour” mingling with our guests, and we didn’t have to worry about shooing away people that were in the background. It’s one of the best decisions we made in regards to our wedding.
One word of advice though–if you decide to jump on the bed, be careful not to knee your hubby in the um, you know, sensitive area before your wedding night as I did! 
…and back to reality aka work. 
Then I got asked the following questions:
Question: How was the wedding?!
Answer: Our wedding was absolutely the most beautiful and happiest day in my life thus far.
The happiness I felt that day was unlike any other I’ve ever experienced. It was intertwined with confidence in knowing that through faith our marriage was going to be God-serving phenomenal journey, with contentment in knowing that I have a wonderful partner to help me weather through life’s storms, with anticipation of the lifetime of laughs to come, and with joy in knowing our closest and dearest were just as happy for us as we were for ourselves.
I think it showed because people told me I looked the happiest they’ve ever seen me!
I’m married. I’m a WIFE. And Mr.Tomato is my husband (though I’ve decided to call him “hubby” hehe). 
After weeks of worrying about the day-of, I was surprisingly (miraculously?) VERY relaxed during the day. I woke up at 4:30am, blogged on Weddingbee, went back to nap for two hours, and waited for my bridesmaids to arrive. They were 15 minutes late. I didn’t spazz a bit. They apologized profusely. I assured them not to worry.
We arrived for our hair/makeup appointment half an hour early, so we decided to grab a cup of coffee at a nearby bakery. My bridesmaid Janice told the guy behind the counter I was getting married today, to which he said in disbelief, “Today? No way! You are the most relaxed looking bride I’ve ever seen.” Read more…
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It’s 4:30 am and I am WIDE AWAKE. I have no idea why. I’m supposed to leave with my bridesmaids in just a few hours for our hair/makeup appointment in SF, so I need the sleep and not the baggy eyes! But here I am, blogging. I guess I’m just too excited. 
Yesterday evening, Mr.Tomato was making mysterious comments, such as:
“So, I read on Weddingbee that traditionally the bride/groom give each other gifts…”
My answer: Um, yes.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
My answer: Um, because you’ll never need cufflinks and you already have a nice watch? (But actually, part of the reason I never mentioned the possibility was because Mr.Tomato gets REALLY stressed out when it comes to buying gifts for me…so I figured I’d spare him money AND pain…plus we are getting married and that’s the best gift of all! I know I know, complete cheese. 
)
Finally! Two days before the wedding, and I just finished my rosemary salt favors. 
I originally wasn’t going to do favors. They can be a waste of money and an extra stress-inducer I didn’t want. But then Miss Corn posted about her great favors using Martha Stewart’s Rosemary Salt recipe and of course, my mind turned a switch and I just HAD to do them. The idea was perfect for Mr.Tomato and me since we’re both foodies and rosemary is one of his favorite herbs. Plus the recipe seemed easy (and cheap) enough.
After much perusal, I purchased little 1 oz jars with cork tops from Save On Crafts. I figured people don’t need THAT much rosemary salt, and they were cute, too! They were $18.96 for 24 bottles; not bad at all.
Figuring out how to do labels took a bit of thinking. I perused myweddinglabels.com but the labels were pricey if you factor in shipping costs…and even the smallest ones were too big for my 1.5 inch jars. What to do?
Create the honeymoon of your dreams.
Getting ready (and slightly freaking) for her wedding this weekend! I can’t believe I’m already in the middle of the last week as a “Miss”! Sorry I’ve been MIA…
This past Sunday some of my church friends threw a bridal shower for me. Here are some pics…enjoy!
I’ve been getting quite a few registry gifts lately, and I’m already having trouble keeping track of who gave us what, especially since some of our generous guests have sent us more than one gift! I decided that instead of waiting until after I get married to start on the thank you notes, perhaps I should start now. So in five minutes, I whipped up this:
The first day I met my site coordinator-to-be, I thought she was wonderful. Informative, polite, friendly. But the wonderfulness disappeared as soon as Mr. Tomato and I signed the contract and began to discuss details. Soon I felt like I was no longer a person, but a wallet–and constantly being pestered to spend more money. I was “strongly advised” to rent a room at Auberge (which by the way starts at $600 AND has a two-night minimum on weekends). I was required to provide wine for my guests (which had not been mentioned in the contract) during dinner.
Heck NO. 
But she wouldn’t take no for an answer and would find ways to make money-spending “suggestions” in every conversation we had with each other. I was sick of it, but I refused to move from my budget. I am not going to spend money I simply don’t have, especially on things I don’t think are important.
Good grief. Two weeks before the wedding and my site coordinator emails me to say that by the way, we cannot accommodate eight tables in your reception room anymore, only six, possibly seven. Eight tables just won’t work.
SAY WHA?! 
She then said if I wanted eight tables, we’d have to open up another room (Vista II in the picture below), which I definitely don’t want. How can I see my guests in Vista II if I’ll be seated in Vista I?! Here is a diagram of the reception layout:
The week before my final dress fitting, my meals consist of:
-Fried chicken cutlet
-Fried calamari
-Chicken fingers, fried zucchini
-All you can eat buffet. Granted I could have stayed at the salad bar, but hello! who can suppress the baked goods and sweets?
-Hamburger and fries
-Pizza, pizza and pizza
-Boston Cream Pie
-Cheesecake
Why do I have no self control?! I blame it on Mr.Tomato 
(okay okay, I was the one who wanted fried calamari and the Boston Cream Pie…and the cheesecake…).
Thanks to Miss Corn’s recent post, I’m jumping on the Spanx bandwagon. Hopefully my fitting this Friday won’t be completely disastrous! (last time the alterations lady actually poked a little fun at the “pudge” aka my stomach). 
Less than three weeks away and I still have not found an acceptable hair comb to go with my hairdo! Way to go Miss Tomato. 
I just realized today that if I don’t get a move on, I may have to request expedited shipping, and who wants to pay for that?
Originally, I was not planning to have any hair accessories (except for the veil of course). But when I had my final hair trial a few weeks ago, the stylist suggested that I find a hair comb that would go on the side of my head. I’m having a half updo with a side part, and I had to admit an ornamented hair comb would make my hair look more elegant. Unfortunately, the hair comb she demonstrated on me costs $140 which I am not willing to pay.
My requirements for “the” hair comb:
1) Less than $50, but doesn’t look “cheap.”
2) More than 2″ but less than 5″ in length (I don’t want a tiara on the side of my head).
3) A combination of swarovski crystals and pearls, as I want a little sparkle but not too much.
4) Should go with my Monique dress:
This past weekend, I celebrated Mr. Tomato’s birthday by throwing him a surprise party. He’s never had a surprise party before, so he was indeed surprised! His face was of complete utter shock when he opened the door and a huge group of friends popped out. I couldn’t stop grinning. It was priceless. 
I had planned out a photo hunt activity, and divided the teams so that everyone at least knew one other person in their group but could meet some new faces, too (it’s my plan for seating arrangements at the wedding reception as well).
The photo hunt was a big hit, and to my pleasant surprise it also turned out to be a pre-wedding mixer. Everyone that attended Mr.Tomato’s party happens to be coming to our Napa wedding as well, and I didn’t realize until afterwards that since a lot of our friends don’t know each other yet, it was a chance for them to be introduced and mingle before the big day. If you’re having a wedding celebration that spans over the course of a few days, this could be an idea to consider. 
This may sound odd, but I’m very apprehensive of my wedding day.
The day Mr. Tomato asked me to marry him was one of the happiest moments in my life. Unfortunately, the weeks before that moment were heart-wrenching. Ever since my mom found out we wanted to get engaged, she stopped speaking to me. It actually has nothing to do with Mr.Tomato, but that I’m too young (25), unable to support myself (because I haven’t bought a half million dollar condo) and I “just” graduated from college (three years ago). She’s hung up the phone when I call her. She refuses to see me. She’s made it clear she wants nothing to do with me. My dad has been okay with us getting married and has tried talking to her, but she won’t budge. I feel like I’m in some crazy high-school drama except it’s a little different when it comes to your blood. You can’t really just dump your family and leave it at that. Read more…
I posted about my dilemma on DIY vs. taking the vendor route for my fan programs awhile ago. I’d have to say I was leaning towards the vendor route BEFORE the post, but then with the encouragement of WeddingBee readers, I decided to research just how much work would be involved in the DIY process.
There were Microsoft Word templates available, but I wanted something a little fancier than just simple text (I know I know, I’m creating more work for myself). That’s when I came upon Susanne of Cards de Luxe.
One look at her work and I fell in love. I thought I scoured the web for samples of fan programs already, but clearly I missed hers! Check these out:
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Mrs. Tomato, Napa Valley Age and Occupation: 25, Technology Project Manager Fiance's Age and Occupation: 27, Engineer Engagement Date: October 22, 2006 Wedding Date: July 1, 2007 Blogging Since: May 1, 2006 Venue: Auberge du Soleil About Me: I love all things beautiful. From handmade stationery, feminine fashion and delicate flowers to the little moments in your life treasured with your loved one. I am also notorious among my friends to be a deal hunter! My best deal was perhaps my Monique Lhuillier dress for $1100 (orig. $5000). I also tend to use a lot of exclamation marks! =)
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