Our photos still aren't ready for public viewing. So, more text here. Briefly, after dinner, people did some toasts and Mike got up and thanked everyone for coming. Then cake time! It was very low-key. We didn't play a song, there was no smashing of the cake in each others' faces (I hate that so much.). We had a flourless chocolate cake that we decorated with some flowers. We also served glasses of milk with the cake. We cut the cake, gave each other a bite, then poured goblets of milk and "cheered" each other. It made for some cute photos.
A few minutes later, when we noticed people were finished with their cake and starting to get antsy, we put on the dance playlist. (We did all ipod playlists with one friend in charge of queueing them up.) With no special announcements, Mike and I went onto the dancefloor, our friend started the first song on the list, and we danced. Our first song was Bruce Springsteen's "Thunder Road." We had told some people that we didn't want to dance the whole song by ourselves, so when it started to rock out in the middle, my maid of honor got a bunch of guests out on the floor to join us. And then we just put the playlist on shuffle and let people rock on for the rest of the night!
I had worked hard on our dance playlist and was very happy with everyone's reaction and the amount of dancing that went on. It's not full of particularly weddingy/romantic songs. Just really good party songs. Some highlights:
Take On Me, a-ha
Dancing Queen, ABBA
Mamma Mia, ABBA
Private Idaho, The B-52's
Here, There and Everywhere, The Beatles
Stayin' Alive, Bee Gees
You & Me & The Bottle Makes 3 Tonight, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
Heart of Glass, Blondie
Just Like Heaven, The Cure
Young Americans, David Bowie
You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You, Dean Martin
Crocodile Rock, Elton John
Oh L'Amour, Erasure
Chains Of Love, Erasure
Slow Ride, Foghat
Sweet Child O' Mine, Guns N' Roses
Don't You Want Me, The Human League
Love Will Tear Us Apart, Joy Division
Groove Me, King Floyd
Bizarre Love Triangle, New Order
If You Leave, OMD
Walkin' After Midnight, Patsy Cline
Always on My Mind, Pet Shop Boys
In Your Eyes, Peter Gabriel
Such Great Heights, The Postal Service
Don't You (Forget About Me), Simple Minds
Ball and Chain, Social Distortion
Hell, Squirrel Nut Zippers
My Best Friend, Weezer
Showing posts with label Big Day. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Big Day. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Friday, July 6, 2007
Recap--Ceremony and Dinner
I haven't wanted to share too many details of the rest of the wedding until I have wonderful photographs to illustrated them with. We have the photos. But they are not ready for public viewing yet. (We've been loving looking at them though!) So, there's lots of fodder for future posts, once those photos are ready. For the time being...
The ceremony. We had four little girls present and gave them each bouquets and the option to sit with their parents or walk down the aisle with us. Two of my younger cousins decided to walk down the aisle. So we sent them down, then my cousin and Mike's brother, who were the maid of honor and best man. Then Mike and I walked down hand in hand! (We walked down the aisle to the first 30 seconds or so of Loquasto International Film Festival, by Mark Mothersbaugh from the Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou soundtrack.) Our officiant was a friend that Mike's known since college and I've known for almost as long as I've known Mike. He said some very nice things about us and how we met (including how it's all Vicky's husband's doing). Then Mike and I read our vows to each other. We exchanged rings. We kissed. The end. Maybe took 20 minutes!
I think it was after the ceremony that the photographer took some portraits of us with our families. They were pretty casual. And we did them on the grass right next to the ceremony site so other guests could take pictures, or just watch with their drinks and appetizers in hand. We weren't sequestered away for any length of time.
Finally it was dinner time! I realized suddenly I was starving. People had been putting glasses of water in my hand all evening long, but no one brought me any of the yummy-looking appetizers I had so painstakingly selected. Tiny twice-baked potatoes with sour cream and mini apple-chicken sausages with crushed peanuts. I arrived at our table to find the servers had left a plate of them just for us! I will rave about our caterer, Serves You Right, fully at a later time. But the food was amazing! And serving went smoothly. Since we only had about 50 guests, no one had to wait too long for their turn at the buffet. Full guests equal happy guests. Mike and I had a sweetheart table. I hate that name, but loved the concept. It allowed us to have some quiet time to actually eat and enjoy our food. We were first in line for the buffet! And servers took care of us well, bringing glasses of lemonade and champagne and water. (I drank so much water! And only half a glass of champagne the whole night!)
I think that's all I've got in me right now. Reliving the night is exhausting!
The ceremony. We had four little girls present and gave them each bouquets and the option to sit with their parents or walk down the aisle with us. Two of my younger cousins decided to walk down the aisle. So we sent them down, then my cousin and Mike's brother, who were the maid of honor and best man. Then Mike and I walked down hand in hand! (We walked down the aisle to the first 30 seconds or so of Loquasto International Film Festival, by Mark Mothersbaugh from the Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou soundtrack.) Our officiant was a friend that Mike's known since college and I've known for almost as long as I've known Mike. He said some very nice things about us and how we met (including how it's all Vicky's husband's doing). Then Mike and I read our vows to each other. We exchanged rings. We kissed. The end. Maybe took 20 minutes!
I think it was after the ceremony that the photographer took some portraits of us with our families. They were pretty casual. And we did them on the grass right next to the ceremony site so other guests could take pictures, or just watch with their drinks and appetizers in hand. We weren't sequestered away for any length of time.
Finally it was dinner time! I realized suddenly I was starving. People had been putting glasses of water in my hand all evening long, but no one brought me any of the yummy-looking appetizers I had so painstakingly selected. Tiny twice-baked potatoes with sour cream and mini apple-chicken sausages with crushed peanuts. I arrived at our table to find the servers had left a plate of them just for us! I will rave about our caterer, Serves You Right, fully at a later time. But the food was amazing! And serving went smoothly. Since we only had about 50 guests, no one had to wait too long for their turn at the buffet. Full guests equal happy guests. Mike and I had a sweetheart table. I hate that name, but loved the concept. It allowed us to have some quiet time to actually eat and enjoy our food. We were first in line for the buffet! And servers took care of us well, bringing glasses of lemonade and champagne and water. (I drank so much water! And only half a glass of champagne the whole night!)
I think that's all I've got in me right now. Reliving the night is exhausting!
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Recap--Getting Dressed
Well, I didn't mean for that dramatic pause to last for so long. But you know how life is. Have a wedding. Then have your debit card stolen, and your tub drain get clogged, and your husband go away on a business trip then come home and start puking.
So, Mike realized he forgot his tux shirt! I was in the bathroom. He made a snap decision to just drive back all the way home himself rather than have a guest bring another shirt, send someone back to our house, stop at a mall and buy a new shirt, etc. The drive generally takes an hour one-way at that time of day. It was a Monday, remember, and at 5 pm there is killer rush hour traffic.
As soon as Mike announced the missing shirt I felt strangely calm. That was it. That's what we forgot. We might start late, but if that's the worst that happens, that's not so bad. I was thinking, well, there will just be a little less time for dancing. We had already arranged for appetizers and the bar to be available before the ceremony, so guests would have plenty of food and drink to keep them busy.
I decided not to get dressed right away, since I suddenly had some more time. I went out to greet some guests who had arrived early, friends of Mike's from work who enjoyed hearing about him zooming home to get the shirt. (They take aggressive driving training for their jobs and were certain Mike was using his skills to speed and weave throughout traffic.)
Finally it was time for me to get dressed. Since hair and makeup was all done, all I had to do really was step into the dress. My mom helped me. Then the photographer came in while I freshened up my hair a bit and added my tiara. She had a lot of time to photograph me without Mike and she loved the stone wall finish in the salon, so spent a lot of time there. I felt so princessy. And it was fun. I enjoyed being the center of attention more than I thought I would.
Since we had planned on being dressed and greeting our guests together (i.e., I wasn't going to stayed sequestered away in secret until the ceremony), I went out to face everyone while waiting for Mike. It was so amazing! Everyone's reaction to the dress and me in it. Again, I felt princessy and was surprised by how much I enjoyed it.
At 5:55 pm, about 5 minutes before the official start of the wedding (the time the bar opens), I noticed the shuttle bus arriving with the majority of guests. Then I felt a whoosh and saw a blur. It was Mike with his shirt! He had pulled in right behind the bus and was running to the bathroom to get changed. (The photographer got a great shot of this blur of Mike running through the door.) Mike made the trip in 55 minutes, round trip! He was all dressed and ready just as the shuttle bus folks were approaching the front door of the venue, so very few people even knew there had been a problem. It was amazing. We could greet everyone and be smiling and happy and laughing with everyone.
So, Mike realized he forgot his tux shirt! I was in the bathroom. He made a snap decision to just drive back all the way home himself rather than have a guest bring another shirt, send someone back to our house, stop at a mall and buy a new shirt, etc. The drive generally takes an hour one-way at that time of day. It was a Monday, remember, and at 5 pm there is killer rush hour traffic.
As soon as Mike announced the missing shirt I felt strangely calm. That was it. That's what we forgot. We might start late, but if that's the worst that happens, that's not so bad. I was thinking, well, there will just be a little less time for dancing. We had already arranged for appetizers and the bar to be available before the ceremony, so guests would have plenty of food and drink to keep them busy.
I decided not to get dressed right away, since I suddenly had some more time. I went out to greet some guests who had arrived early, friends of Mike's from work who enjoyed hearing about him zooming home to get the shirt. (They take aggressive driving training for their jobs and were certain Mike was using his skills to speed and weave throughout traffic.)
Finally it was time for me to get dressed. Since hair and makeup was all done, all I had to do really was step into the dress. My mom helped me. Then the photographer came in while I freshened up my hair a bit and added my tiara. She had a lot of time to photograph me without Mike and she loved the stone wall finish in the salon, so spent a lot of time there. I felt so princessy. And it was fun. I enjoyed being the center of attention more than I thought I would.Since we had planned on being dressed and greeting our guests together (i.e., I wasn't going to stayed sequestered away in secret until the ceremony), I went out to face everyone while waiting for Mike. It was so amazing! Everyone's reaction to the dress and me in it. Again, I felt princessy and was surprised by how much I enjoyed it.
At 5:55 pm, about 5 minutes before the official start of the wedding (the time the bar opens), I noticed the shuttle bus arriving with the majority of guests. Then I felt a whoosh and saw a blur. It was Mike with his shirt! He had pulled in right behind the bus and was running to the bathroom to get changed. (The photographer got a great shot of this blur of Mike running through the door.) Mike made the trip in 55 minutes, round trip! He was all dressed and ready just as the shuttle bus folks were approaching the front door of the venue, so very few people even knew there had been a problem. It was amazing. We could greet everyone and be smiling and happy and laughing with everyone.
Friday, June 29, 2007
Recap--Getting Ready
I think I'm finally ready to talk about it a little. We still don't have a lot of pictures to share. This is a photo of one of the centerpieces that I sent to the caterer a couple months ago to give her an idea of the "feel" of the event. (Clicking on the pic will take you to a larger image on our flickr page.)
Everyone says the day was a whirlwind, don't they? I didn't really feel that way until the event was actually starting. We both woke up early to put the finishing touches on our vows. Then we showered, had cereal, regular low-key morning things. At noon I picked up my mom at the hotel, then we made the very last trip to Target before picking up the cake. Back home with the cake, we found we had absolutely no room in the refrigerator for it, so we cranked the AC to about 50 degrees and left the cake on the kitchen counter. Still nothing to worry about yet.
My mom steamed our clothes, then went back to the hotel to get herself ready. My MOH arrived to help me with hair and makeup, and my aunt, uncle, and cousin arrived to let us load some stuff into their car. My uncle filmed the wedding for us and he got the whole hair and makeup part. I made sure to wear a button-front shirt during hair and makeup so it was easy to change into the dress later without ruining everything by lifting a shirt over my head.
Finally, all that was left to do was finish loading up the car and drive over to the Brazilian Room. That's when I started feeling nauseaus. Despite checking everything in our car, everything in my aunt and uncle's car, and everything in the two cars of friends, who were all arriving early with us, I had a nagging feeling something was forgotten. And that's a common feeling for me, because we usually do forget something whenever we leave the house for something important.
We arrived at the Brazilian Room right on schedule. Some friends were already there. They had brought the stereo equipment and the bar drinks and were getting all that stuff set up. We unloaded our car and I put out the centerpieces and Mike put out the napkins and favors. (I had a specific way I wanted them, even though it appeared random, so the caterer let me do that instead of her workers. They had plenty to do, though.)
Then it was time to give up my control and let the professional party people and the friends and family members who arrived early to help us to do their work. And time for me to put my dress on! A bunch of people (my mom, my young cousin, my uncle filming, the photographer) followed me into the dressing room, but I really had to use the bathroom that was connected to it, so I asked the entourage to back off and please give me a minute alone. As I was in the bathroom I heard Mike's voice in the hall: "I forgot my shirt!"
Is it time to worry yet?
Everyone says the day was a whirlwind, don't they? I didn't really feel that way until the event was actually starting. We both woke up early to put the finishing touches on our vows. Then we showered, had cereal, regular low-key morning things. At noon I picked up my mom at the hotel, then we made the very last trip to Target before picking up the cake. Back home with the cake, we found we had absolutely no room in the refrigerator for it, so we cranked the AC to about 50 degrees and left the cake on the kitchen counter. Still nothing to worry about yet.
My mom steamed our clothes, then went back to the hotel to get herself ready. My MOH arrived to help me with hair and makeup, and my aunt, uncle, and cousin arrived to let us load some stuff into their car. My uncle filmed the wedding for us and he got the whole hair and makeup part. I made sure to wear a button-front shirt during hair and makeup so it was easy to change into the dress later without ruining everything by lifting a shirt over my head.
Finally, all that was left to do was finish loading up the car and drive over to the Brazilian Room. That's when I started feeling nauseaus. Despite checking everything in our car, everything in my aunt and uncle's car, and everything in the two cars of friends, who were all arriving early with us, I had a nagging feeling something was forgotten. And that's a common feeling for me, because we usually do forget something whenever we leave the house for something important.
We arrived at the Brazilian Room right on schedule. Some friends were already there. They had brought the stereo equipment and the bar drinks and were getting all that stuff set up. We unloaded our car and I put out the centerpieces and Mike put out the napkins and favors. (I had a specific way I wanted them, even though it appeared random, so the caterer let me do that instead of her workers. They had plenty to do, though.)
Then it was time to give up my control and let the professional party people and the friends and family members who arrived early to help us to do their work. And time for me to put my dress on! A bunch of people (my mom, my young cousin, my uncle filming, the photographer) followed me into the dressing room, but I really had to use the bathroom that was connected to it, so I asked the entourage to back off and please give me a minute alone. As I was in the bathroom I heard Mike's voice in the hall: "I forgot my shirt!"
Is it time to worry yet?
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
The First Pic
Via a friend's phone, emailed to us last night:
Details to follow. We are tired, but happy.
Details to follow. We are tired, but happy.
CONGRATULATIONS!!
Yesterday was Stephanie and Mike's 'Big Day'. YEAH!!!
Did Stephanie make it through the day without going all Bridezilla on someone's ass? Time will only tell. We wait with baited breath and MUCH CONGRATULATIONS!!! Wish we could have been there to taste the dark chocolate cake and see the beautfiul napkins and dress all done by hand. Truly an amazing feat!
Send Steph and Mike a congrats today and wish them well!
*** That leaves us with only Ashley and her bridal journey. We have an open spot! Write to us and tell Stephanie and I why you would make a great 'Flaming Tulle' Featured bride.***
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
