Les Fleurs

We have found our florist and its not too expensive. Much less than the designer woman, she was crazy overpriced. I am very excited about our flowers and happy that we will have some present but that it will still be simple.

The florist is George's Flowers in downtown Madison. While I have not used them before I am very familiar with the name and have a feeling they have been around for quite sometime. I am also quite pleased with our wedding consultant. She made some practice ideas for us and emailed the pictures. It looks like she is very talented and smart. She understood our theme and was able to translate it into some pieces for the wedding.

For the most part we are just sticking with wedding flowers. The bouquets and alter pieces. We wanted to keep the flowers in our budget and so centerpieces are out. While floral centerpieces look amazing they also come with a huge price tag. We want to divert funds elsewhere and so we will be designing more creative centerpieces. All surrounding the circular theme and of course you'll see some red.

This was one of the hardest parts for me. I love flowers but have always thought while beautiful are never worth their cost. You spend so much money on something that dies in a few days. At least goldfish are cheap so it doesn't matter if you go through 2 per day. I embraced my inner girly-ness with the help of Dan and decided the small amount of flowers we will have will be very nice in the photos. If I have my way the roses will be super cool looking. I just gotta check it out some more before I decide.

Meet the Parents ten years later!

While the escapades of last Sat. were not as outrageous or funny than the film and this weekend was devoid of a Ben Stiller cameo the meeting of the parents is officially check off our lists.

My family (Mom, her boyfriend Dave and Rose) made the trip down to Urbana for a couple reasons. It was a mix of meeting the in-laws and also seeing where I have been for the past year and a half. It was their first trip to central IL to see me.

They got here Sat afternoon and Dan and I quickly whisked them away from their hotel to begin the tours of campus our apartment and to get a bite to eat. We ate at the restaurant Seven Saints which specializes in sliders (little mini sandwiches). It was their first time experiencing sliders and I'm pretty sure all went well. I really enjoyed mine. After that it was off to walking around. We went all over campus stopping for a little science lesson in my research lab. I showed them a little bit about what I do and answered some very good questions from Dave. He works at the UW hospital and wanted to know what some of the lab tests are that are run for him. So I explained what some of the tests did and used props and drawings to illustrate it.

One thing that was cool to see was a wedding being held on campus that day. While I didn't get to see much we did peek into their reception center to see the decorations. I really love seeing what others do so I can get ideas. Every little thing helps. One thing I do know is that I'm not spending much time outdoors if the weather is cold. Their ceremony was outdoors and it is March. Burrrrrr for the bride. I hope she stayed warm and snuggled up tho her husband. The ceremony setup did look amazing though, so it was probably worth it.

Once 5pm rolled around it was time to get down to business. We took my family over to Dan's parents house where we introduced the fams and sat to chat a little before dinner. After a little embarrassment with little kid photos (yes my mom carries then in her purse) and some story telling the mood was lightened a little. Ginger the dog also added a bit to the conversation and I think loved all the attention. Dave seemed to really like her and Ginger spent a lot of time over by him.

Once dinner rolled around we all gathered at a nice steak restaurant downtown in Champaign called Jim Gould's. The meal was delicious and gave more time for conversation between the families. Dan's brother and his fiancee also joined us so it was quite a party. After what seemed like no time at all dinner was over and it was time to go our separate ways. All in all I think the meeting went very well and luckily nothing totally embarrassing went on. So the wedding should be just another good mixing of the families.

Whew glad that's all over now I can relax. I would say the introduction of the parents is the most stressful part of the wedding planning. At least it was for me.

On a side note. My Gpa and Barb just happened to be in the area on Sun and so we traveled to Rantoul to introduce Dan to them. Just a crazy weekend of introductions.

That tastes good!

Sun Mar. 14th was the menu showcase put on by the Monona Terrace. Even with my toothache I partook in the tasting of so much delicious food.

Dan and I arrived at the Terrace very excited to get a look at how they present the food and also meet our catering manager. One thing we were excited about was two of the food options we are considering were being served. So we got to have a good idea of what to expect when set the menu in stone, cuz we personally approve. This also means that for you fellow picky eaters you will not be forgotten because as everyone knows I am super super SUPER picky.

Overall the food tasted good and looked nice. We are planning to have a plated meal and so we want the food to look appetizing. One thing that was nice to experience was the staff. They seemed to do a very nice job clearing the tables and serving the food. They were also very knowledgeable on what they were serving. Very comforting to get a good feeling about the staff because no matter how good the food is if the service is terrible.

The one part I was looking forward to the most was getting to meet Sue Burke the catering manager that will be helping with the wedding. We got some of our harder more stressing questions answered. It's always easier to get stuff done in person than via email but I realize email is easier for long distance planning.

This event left us feeling much better about the venue and how we can organize the room to make it work for us. Hopefully once we sit down with Sue we can get more details finalized and begin to mark those off the list. Oh how I love to make check marks.

Fancy = Expensive

The last meeting of our Saturday planning marathon took us to a small town 40 miles from WI. The winding country roads ultimately led us up to a sorta worn down building in the City of New Glarus. Who woulda thought that this town would be home to a high class wedding designer.

To begin we went through so much paperwork and prepping I thought she had already received a deposit and was ready to get started. It so very much reminded me that I should have all the vendors we are using in one simple place so I don't have to look like a fool trying to find them in my overflowing binder. Not to mention she wanted to know so much information I can't even remember all that we told her. One thing for sure is she complimented our engagement story. I almost feel like I should enter it in a contest for best proposals of all time!!!

During the consultation Dan and I worked out some ideas and got some good feedback from her which was nice and helpful. However, it became increasingly clear that this woman wants to be a wedding planner and total designer. From scratch she would love to make the room her design. She listened but not very well. We started off by saying we wanted a simple affair and she wanted to bring in linens, room divider, complicated centerpieces (she didn't really like our idea) and just all this stuff I never even wanted to consider. Simple is the key to this affair and we want to keep it that way. So while the design part went okay I would maybe say good because a free brainstorm session with a wedding designer doesn't hurt.

The designer then went to a whole other level when she brought out the contract. This is where this post gets scary. I'm going to approach this by saying hold onto your wallets bc she is coming after you. She charges $500 just to design. Did you hear me 500 just to begin working on the wedding, that is the retainer fee, the money doesn't apply toward anything. Well I guess we get her bible of wedding day details but still $500. Can anyone hear me yelling? Needless to say once we read through all the other fees she tacks on for the sake of charging more her services (no decor at this point) reach the max of our budget. This was a real slap in the face. So in my small bouts (very small) of assertiveness I actually mentioned to her that the retainer is 1/3 of our total budget for the decor and flowers. I also asked her what the typical cost of weddings she has done are. Her answers... well frankly I think your budget is really low for what we discussed, i can't even do the bouquets for $1000 and the smallest she did was $2000 on decor alone and upwards of $30,000. Now for you out there reading this, YES someone in Madison, WI (not NYC) is spending 30,000 on decorations. This blows my mind. If I want to spend $30,000 on something it would be a car or maybe down payment on a house not decorations.

Are you all shocked and blown away? This little design consultation actually satisfied Dan and I too a large degree. One: We don't care about decorations or the design to spend anymore than our budget. The wedding is not about that and her design would again steer toward more fancy and formal affair. Two: She was way too off for Dan and my style and the business relationship would just get weird having her daughter draw up pictures of plain and simple decor. Three: We got a free consultation with a trained designer and got to pick her brain for ideas and solutions to some problems we had encountered. Not too shabby.

So I say when I get around to it I will gracefully tell her that we will not be working with her. Not that I think she expects us too. In the mean time Dan and I have been recording some ideas for things we could on our own and still look nice. Also perhaps even look somewhat professional just not with the same price.

Oh by the way, Dan and I are super creative and so you better get ready for some really good fun.

We're more fun than this right...?

So now that Jeni is pretty much back to normal and no longer needing assistance, I wanted to start catching you all up on what we did in Madison a couple weekends ago.  We also have some updates from this week to give.

First, I'll talk about invitations.  So let me back up to the night before we left for Madison.  We were planning the Invitations and were looking at fonts.  I turned to Jeni and said "how about this one" pointing to a script-style somewhat frilly font.  Little did I know how important font supposedly is to our ceremony's theme. Jeni had a mini breakdown very worried that our theme was being pushed way more fancy than we wanted it, and intended it to be.  Apparently font is a big indicator of how fancy your wedding is intended to be.  After a bit of calming down, we both looked at each other and said "were more fun than this right...?" both thinking that the theme we were leaning toward was way more formal and fancy than we wanted. That it didn't really represent us or our personalities.  So we started brainstorming and thinking of ways to keep our colors and make it more modern and fun.  We finally came up with a simple idea to tie it all together and make it more modern, and it all started with an idea for the invitations.  Whats funny is neither of us originally wanted invitations at all.

Over the weekend in Madison we with met someone from the Paper Deli (the husband in the husband-wife duo who own and operate it), and planned out our invitations with our new theme and thoughts.  Even after not wanting them in the first place, we were pretty excited about them when we left.  We think they will set the stage for our wedding and helped us figure out in our heads what we really wanted. 

More to come, we did a lot that weekend, but we've had other things on our mind since then.

Limitless Ceremony

I am back and feeling much better. However, while I was recovering there was an accident that knocked out Dan and my internet access at home. So I will be making updates at work at least until we get out internet back. :( So check back but realize we may be offline for a bit.

The first of the meetings this two Saturdays ago was with our officiant, Rev. Arthur Hendrick. To say this meeting was a success is a complete understatement. I will go into detail below but in case you were curious here is the Reverand's website.

http://www.skysthelimitweddings.com/index.php

I was pretty nervous about this appointment. It isn't anything like working with a vendor (caterer or florist for example) because the officiant plays a main role at the ceremony. He is directly involved in how Dan and I start our life together. He not only has to be a good fit for Dan and I but also for our families and the general ceremony style we want. Needless to say, my worries were washed away within just a few moments of talking to the Rev. He spent quite a bit of time asking about Dan and I and key moments in our relationship. I began to realize that Dan and I have been through a lot in such a short amount of time. It seems like so long ago we were living in two separate cities trying to decide our next moves.

Not only did the Rev learn a lot about Dan and I but we also were encouraged to ask questions of him. It was nice to get an inside look on the person who will marry us. We discussed everything that came to mind and in a short 1.5 hour meeting Dan and I were certain that he would be the right fit.

Rev. Arthur has decided to make his services open to anyone and to deliver a ceremony completely catered to his clients. Over the next few months Dan and I will need to begin working on ideas and concepts for which our ceremony will take shape. In some respects a cookie cutter ceremony would be easier but it wouldn't have the personality that only Dan and I can add. Luckily only Dan and I can limit the ceremony and I hope once its all decided you all will be able to say...of course that was the ceremony, it is soooooo Dan and Jeni. Once the inner inspiration hits me it will be time to get to work.

Cya all tom for the invitations.

Update

Quick update on Jeni.  She got out of surgery and everything went as planned.  Shes pretty swollen up and out of it, but seems to be recovering fine.  Just in case anyone was worried.
-Dan

A quick one today

Just a little update today and a notification for the rest of the week.

I have had a toothache since last Friday. The pain is super bad and will require surgery. I am having the surgery this Thursday to take out the tooth causing me pain and the other two non-functional teeth. That means big time anesthesia and basically similar to wisdom teeth extraction. So I will most likely be absent for a little while or at least only a post tom and then Fri. Keep me in your thoughts and I'll let you all know how it goes once I'm feeling better.

Once this is all done I only have a few more appointments and then 100% dental health. I'm very excited until then and looking forward to the mundane workweeks again.

<3 and feel free to email or comment here. I'll still be checking that just not writing anything new.

Roses are red, and they are white

I am quite relieved that Dan and I got through our first conversation with a florist and its wasn't that hard. I tried to prepare last minute and luckily came up with some ideas during the conversation but all in all I think it went well. I even got to use some cool floral lingo. While we still have some thinking to do as far as what exactly we want we should be able to get an idea of the prices.

The florist we talked to today is George's Flowers in Madison. If anyone has anything good or bad to say about them please do. I need some inside information to help make the decision. We so far have two floral options and we will need to decided which to choose. Anyway Denise was very helpful and asked the right questions to make us feel comfortable and able to tell our ideas. Somethings may work and others might not. Also money is always an option and so we may have to simplify or cut things down if necessary. I have so many different ideas in my head right now its just a matter of knowing which is the most affordable.

To shoot some out to you here in blog land. I am sticking with a red rose bouquet for me. This will be the traditional dome shaped (nosegay) with a little stem showing. The bridesmaid's bouquets will likely be a smaller nosegay of white roses. My toss bouquet will also be white (I just decided this and I will explain why later). Pretty much all the flowers will be red and as deep a red as I can get. Black roses look awesome but are a premium and so I may avoid those to lessen the cost. If I can get a couple I may use them in only my bouquet as a way of letting me stand out. Cuz we all know I will be drowning in a sea of people, right?

The alter will most likely have two planter type bouquets flanking the officiant. I'm hoping that I can get multiple use out of these displays by carefully moving them to other tables and / or the bar. The ladies bouquets are going to serve as the head table centerpieces. This is a very easy way to use the flowers again. The reason my toss will be white is to solve the symmetry of the bouquets on the head table. With 6 bouquets with mine being different another white will balance the table out. Even if it is much smaller.

Table centerpieces are still being decided on. I can't decide until I see some preliminary figures and talk to the decor people. They should be able to help me think through what Dan and my vision is. Simple, minimalistic and elegant is a hard three words to match when deciding flowers. We want them to be noticeable but not too big and huge to depart from the simple feeling. Like I said before it is so difficult to get things to appear simple. But I will try my hardest.

Off topic a little. Dan and I are heading to Madison this weekend to a plethora of meetings. We will be meeting with the officiant, the invitations people, the florist/decorator (2nd option to today) and having our tasting on Sun. Busy bees this weekend and will have lots of updates. If I can I'll update a little each day instead of one huge update. As always keep on reading and comment away. <3

Smile Bigger

I have been gone for a few days and I am here to let you know I didn't go far. I took a few days off of planning to do something much more important...the dentist. I figured if I'm entering a new chapter of my life (married life) I better prepare for it all the way. My dentist would be very proud of me for advocating dental health. It's better to get healthy now and not wait any longer. Plus I want a great smile on my big day.

Yesterday was the day of my nightmares. I absolutely hate the dentist and am fearful of everything they do. I found out that I will need some serious work done to bring me to 100% dental health. My dentist and his hygienist were very confident that I could get there but it would take a little while and a lot of $$$$. And so the saga began yesterday and will continue until the last problem is fixed. I vow to you all to stick with it even though I would much rather crawl in a hole. I have 8 months (more like 6) to get my mouth looking great. This will hopefully give me the confidence to not hate dentists and to take a more preventative approach in the future. Those twice yearly cleanings will be ever more important. I just hope some day I get insurance cuz dental care ain't cheap.

If anything positive came out of my dentists visit it is that after countless x-rays they have yet to see any wisdom teeth. Yay for me, I dodged a huge bullet there so far. I was reminded that some people don't develop them until middle age so I may still get them. But for now hip hip horray!!!

And so for now I will be planning my wedding with even more vigor. It will mark the new life that is store for me in more than one way. I would also like to give a shout-out to Dan. He has shown so much patience and support for me. I really have nothing else to say except that I Love You soooo much and thanks for standing by me and helping me through this tough time. Oh yeah and he bought me roses yesterday so thanks for those too. <3

Quick Info above

Hello faithful blog followers!  Look up! ^   We now have quick links to help you if you need to know some info about the wedding.  We have logistics information, as well as gift registry information, and hotel information.  Also if you want to contact us privately, send us an email anytime (or use the comments! we love comments!) 

The pages aren't fully filled out yet, so be patient as we set some things up, but check back soon, as they will have useful links and information.  Please let us know suggestions for things were leaving out of the quick info.  As always, thanks for reading!

Lord of the WEDDING Ring!!

On Nov 6th Dan and I shall form the Fellowship of the Wedding Ring. We shall eat with great company and drink until we are merry. Following this great celebration of the joining of our hearts we will embark on an epic adventure. We will travel far and wide to begin the quest for happiness. As we head out for our journey we will be well equipped to face any foes or difficulties we may happen upon us. All this will lead up to the final challenge facing us...wedded bliss.

Well, this little role-playing (RP) demonstrates our location for our honeymoon. We have decided that New Zealand is the place for us to go. Our travel agent let us know that New Zealand is so diverse in possible activities that we would definitely find enough to do. We bought a book about travel to New Zealand and now its just a matter of finding the right mix. Some city and some countryside exploration. I remembered that New Zealand has some really good vineyards and so we will have to visit some of those. As a nod to the above RP there is always tours (such as the LOTR set tour) which take people to see some of the gorgeous landscaping. There are beach towns to relax and swim in the seas if we wanted. Nothing is out of the question. The next step is determining how many days do we want to go and when. We are thinking the weeks surrounding Thanksgiving. You can't beat two free days off of work. We also have to decide which island to spend time on. The north island has the larger cities and international airport. The south island is more landscape packed. The south island is also where they filmed much of the Lord of the Rings. So over the next few weeks Dan and I will research the country and build a great honeymoon.

We are both really excited to go to New Zealand and think it will be a great way to ring in our married life. What I mean is that Dan and I will be stuck in an airplane for 24+ hrs and have to try and get along. That should teach us a lot about each other real quick. :) My guess is everything will be great and I just need to remember to pack some Dramamine. Just spend the majority of the flight sleeping.

Rehearsal Dinner...RESERVED!!!

Yesterday I had the afternoon off (remember I worked 12+ hrs on Fri) and I used the time off to relax but also get some wedding stuff done.

I called the Porta Bella Restaurant to see if we could have our rehearsal dinner there. Sure enough the wine cellar was still available and so I was really excited. I signed a request form and sent in the deposit today. Now I just have to wait until October to begin laying out the menu. Dan and I are planning to do an hors d'oeuvres reception. The food at this restaurant is amazing and I think you will all be pleased.

One other quick update. Dan and I have a meeting with the travel agent tonight. So wish us luck and I'll have an update for you tom.

A little lazy

I apologize for posts being a little sparse this past week. I promise you we are still heavily in the planning stages just haven't gotten here in awhile.

One big thing we got done this weekend was sending out the information for attendants. I hope they feel informed and very much aware of their expectations and when different events will happen. Dan and I just need to remember to update it when more things get decided.

This brings me to my big goals for the week. We need a rehearsal dinner location reserved. I think I found the place that I want and just need to call and see if they are available. The restaurant is iconic in Madison and they have a really cool wine cellar for closed parties. I hope Porta Bella's isn't too popular and are already booked. If so then I will have to look a little deeper for a great Madison restaurant.

This week we also need to begin making our save-the-dates. I have to remember to get Dan on this. I don't know much about design software and stuff. Plus to go along with the save-the-dates Dan and I need another website made. This other site will only contain information related to the wedding and not the planning. Stuff like ceremony here, reception start time, la la la. Boring information but somewhere easily accessible.

Gotta fly but I'll catch ya later.