March 22, 2009

I spent a chunk of the day today checking out wedding websites. I'd really like for us to get one, with a blog feature, but they're expensive ($100ish for the year) and I am not sure if I feel like we should spend the $ or just deal with the free ones. I know I have some time to think about it, but since the wedding planning is underway, I want to make sure it's documented. You know, so when it's all said and done, I remember the journey everyone took together.

Since Adam proposed on March 13, 2009 (a little over a week ago), I have gone gung-go with wedding planning. We've sent a date (September 25, 2010), and have a priest and will have the church as soon as I send the check in tomorrow to reserve it. Our debate has been if we want the mass at 1 pm or 3 pm. I say 1 (which is what it's reserved for) so it gives us time to go downtown and take pictures, but I will be able to feel better with 3 as soon as we find a reception site. The reception sites we're looking at are about 45 minutes-an hour away from the church, so that will have to be taken into account.

Our church is the church my parents got married at, 30 years ago this year. I grew up going to that church for various reasons (weddings, funerals, masses in general) and I have always wanted to get married there. It's not one of those elegant, intimate settings, but still something that is a part of my dream wedding. The rest of that dream wedding, though, is still to be realized.

We're both really excited about getting married -- we have been together for nearly 6 years and have been living together for nearly 2, so a wedding makes it all "official", although not everyone sees it as necessary. I was done being a "girlfriend" because, honestly, I felt like people never really gave us the credit for our union that I think we deserve. Now that I'm a fiancee, I feel like we're being taken more seriously.

We went looking at halls yesterday with our moms. It's so hard. We went to one hall, which has 3 different rooms. I was pretty much a no-go on this one from the minute we walked in. It was nice enough, but I don't want that "hall" feeling, and that's exactly what it was -- a room with no windows. We went to the country club next door, where friends of ours were married, and we decided we still liked it. Unfortunately, there was a funeral luncheon at the time we were there, so we were unable to view the rooms with our moms. Obviously, if we choose it, we would need to go back with our moms.

We went to THE hotspot by us for weddings, which is a beautiful facility. They have a gorgeous atrium off of the room we would get, but besides the extra cost to use the atrium (I don't get it - they can't rent the room if we're using the atrium and they can't rent the atrium if we're using the room, but to use the atrium for dinner and dancing is an extra $1000) the staff seemed to be, well...bitchy. Maybe it's not the best word, but it's the one that comes to mind. I felt like the questions we posed were constantly met with "no" instead of "but we could do THIS instead!" and the saleswoman (which is what she was) made an offhand comment after showing us the atrium that we should look at pricing before I feel in love with it and then couldn't afford it. Sure, that's something MY MOM would say to me, but this woman? Please. She doesn't know what I can afford and what I can't. And to be honest, we could, but it would squeeze us tightly in other places and I would rather not have to worry about pinching pennies in the end.

We then drove to the hotels by the airport to pop in, but were unable to meet with anyone regarding pricing. Our friends got married at one of those hotels about a year ago and it was SUCH a great place (with an outdoor area for cocktails) and we had so much fun. Of course, that could be because they are awesome people, but I think that if I had SO much fun at their wedding that I woud easily have that much fun at MY OWN wedding. Really, that's what it's about: being surrounded by the people we love and having a good time.

After the hotels, we stopped by the house for a bit. My mom and I went out and left Adam and his mom at the house, and we went to find the World's Finest Chocolate outlet. HEAVEN. Broken, end of the run chocolate caramel bars for $.75 a bag, which is like 5+ candy bars. Plus, I LOVE WFC, maybe even as much as Fannie May.

We ended up going to Barnes & Noble, and then we went to Ihop for a bite to eat. It is always fun to see my mom, and we had some good wedding chit chat. Unfortunately, the David's Bridal in the mall next to the Ihop was closed by the time we were done, so I have yet to try on my first wedding dress. Yikes.

I will feel much more at ease once we have a hall, because then the rest of it is mostly "details". Of course, considering everything else, I use that term loosely.

On a side note, I am not at all ready to go back to work tomorrow. My throat is still hurting like crazy (I left work early on Friday to have it looked at by a doctor, who said I do not have strep) and I feel crabby because of it. I think maybe the wedding stress will weigh less on me when that is done, because then at least I will feel 100%.