Bacon wrapped bacon

We had our tasting with our fabulous caterer on Tuesday night. Now, it should be said that our caterers do not usually do huge functions. Their forte is to do small, in-home, high-end, 5 course meals for 10-15 people. But we knew them and loved their food, and so we are working it all out.

Needless to say, when they came to our house for the site visit and tasting, I had imagined they would be bringing a small tray of some of our dishes, already cooked and ready to taste. I had no idea what a treat we were in for.

They came in, armed with 2 bottles of wine, ready to COOK us dinner, in our own kitchen. Chef coat blazing, he (the chef) prepared us a wintery meal that showcased 3 of the options our backyard chic bbq wedding buffet would have. To start, delicate crab cakes (one of our entrees) over a celery root coleslaw (which we will not be having.) For the main course, a lovely roasted pork tenderloin, served with a bacon and smoked gouda polenta (one of our sides) and topped with a beautiful red currant reduction. And to finish, one of the most heavenly flourless chocolate cake I've ever had, served with a creme anglaise and a black cherry jam. (The cake will be one of our dessert options.)

The food was unbelievably good, and though we didn't get to taste the majority of our extremely seasonal and local menu, we were inspired by their food. So inspired, that at the end of the meal, we opened our own bottle of wine and spent another hour or two hanging out with them, chatting about life, their own wedding, and many things in between. We connected with them on a great, personal level--one that leaves me feeling that much more cared for during this wedding planning process. 

Having that special experience made me that much more excited for what I think is one of the most important parts of our day--the FOOD!

Staying true to the Wedding Establishment?

As I mentioned yesterday, we're in the process of getting our Save the Dates ready for mailing. However, we have given approximately 4 out already. We're telling ourselves we're saving postage, but the truth is that we love our save the dates so much that when people are around us we want to share!

We've handed out STDs that were hand addressed, and sealed...all they were missing was a stamp. They were beautiful, and we loved being able to see the smile on our friends' faces. And today I plan on continuing through the list, hand addressing and stuffing and sealing the rest.

The question is, is it appalling to just "hand" someone a save the date? I try very hard not to give in to ANYTHING the wedding establishment tells me I have to do. It is our wedding, and we can handle things in any way we want, right? Yet there is this nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach, telling me that people EXPECT to receive their STD in the mail, properly addressed, and if they don't, it just doesn't count. Forget about the fact that I already feel guilty that I'm simply writing out the addresses, and that they're not beautifully printed, or done in calligraphy. But that's just not our style!

I swear, I have the wedding angel and wedding devil permanently perched on my shoulders for most of these decisions. 

And I know that as soon as I see another friend, I'll probably dig through the pile and hand it over. That is our style!    

Sorry, only some kids allowed.

Earlier this week, we addressed, stuffed, and sealed about half of our save the dates. I'm going to wait until they've all gone out before posting a picture, but I can tell you that they are, in a word, amazing. Hilarious. Delightfully funny. Ok, that's more than one word, I know.

Finalizing our save the dates have us in a final guest list tizzy. It's a hard thing, narrowing down the list to the people that you feel MUST be with you on this special day. For us, we'd always thought we'd have a small, intimate affair. But when you start listing the people (and their spouses, children, etc.) that you feel should be at your small intimate affair...the list gets a little nuts, a little quickly.

And so we've been cutting. The first to go, unfortunately, were most of the kids on our list. There are children in our families attending (of course), and then a few children that are like family to us. Our flower girls, for instance, are children that are as close to us as our nieces and nephews, and we see them all the time. 

We're finding it very hard to deal with cutting out other kids though. My fiance, for instance, is extremely torn with the issue of having to tell certain people they cannot bring their children to our special day. As a kid, I remember NEVER being invited to weddings...it just wasn't done. He, however, had a very different experience growing up, and it's hard for BOTH of us to figure out the polite way to do it. How do you tell people that you love that although you enjoy their children, you don't enjoy them enough to allow them to join you for your wedding? 

We started the delicate process of telling people last night, and luckily, 2 of our closest friends took it VERY well. We're trying to explain to people that we're hoping that our wedding can be a fun night out for our adult friends. One where they don't have to chase around their kids, wondering where in the world on our 12 acre property they've run off to, in the dark.

Oh, and mentioning that they have from now til August to find a babysitter seemed to help. :)

Hello there!

Hi there!

I've been engaged since August 4, 2008. Meaning that (even in my head) I've been planning our wedding since August 4, 2008. Most of my friends are married, and thus LOVE hearing me vent, discuss, or plot wedding plans with them. 

But I find there are just sometimes where I don't want to be that bride-to-be who constantly talks about nothing but her wedding, day in and day out. I want to present the look of someone who is a little more balanced and well-rounded, even if most days, I'm not.

Hence, a blog. That, and I've become obsessed with most of the wedding blogs I've found out there, and if I can help just one person feel a little more balanced during this process, well, then, I'll feel a whole lot better!

We're getting married on August 8, 2009, at our home in Michigan. Outside on our property--basically the dream we had when my fiance and I decided we wanted to live there. We are casual, easy going, wedding planners of sorts. Think backyard, chic, bbq. Can't wait!

Hopefully this blog will help me share all my hilarity about wedding planning, especially since I feel so "done" and I have over 8 months to go!

Looking forward...