Nick and Jasmine
Just another WordPress.com weblogSilver Spoon Cakes
I had failed to mention in my previous posts that Deborah Thomson (owner and primary photographer of Figgie Photography – aka, lady doing our engagement pictures) also mentioned that her younger sister did wedding cakes! How convenient! I met with Naomi today, went through her portfolio and felt super confident in her work.
I wish I could post a picture of our cake – it is so fricking cute! We are going with a cupcake style wedding cake, which will be vanilla and raspberry swirl flavors. The top tier, or the piece we will be cutting, will be covered in a clovery-green fondant icing and filled with mint fudge cake (our fave!)
We may still go with some sort of cheesecake dessert, since I found out that Nick actually knows the owner of Bear’s Cheesecake Company! But at this point I don’t want to go nuts on the dessert table, and would much rather opt for a small scoop of French vanilla ice cream garnished with After Eight mints, or fresh strawberries.
Next on the list: Book our flighs to Hawaii!
All it takes is a little humility.
“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” – Colossians 3:12-17
We were always encouraged in my Sunday school class to memorize verses so that later on we’d be able to recall them in times of need. I was never good at it and even as an adult the most I can ever recall are bits and pieces that I can enter into Google.com and search the entire verse for.
Despite the drawback, I still believe that God puts these little bits into my head when certain things occur in my life. Kind of like forcing me to search for His answers and not trick myself into believing my own flawed reasoning.
I can’t expand on this much more, at least not until the dust settles a bit. All I can say is that we are all at fault, and therefore obligated to not only forgive, but be forgiven.
Vendors section added.
Be sure to click on the blue “Vendors” tab at the top to check out the list of great businesses that are helping make our big day possible!
More progress.
It has been a hectic few days! My best friend Raechel welcomed her first child into the world on Halloween:
Welcome to the world, Samuel Joseph Bataller!!!
Today was a pretty busy, yet productive day for Nick and I. As previously mentioned in my last post, things have been pretty crazy so I have been scrambling to get things done ASAP. This morning we head over to the States to purchase our wedding bands. I had wanted to go a little more traditional and get matching bands, but the store didn’t have the width in the style I wanted, so I went with a smaller ring with diamonds through the middle. Nick went with a flat white gold band:
It’s a little hard to see the detail in mine, and to be honest I was initially a little disappointed they didn’t have anything that matched. I put it together and tried it on with my engagement ring and they’re both beveled and raised the exact same height, so they go perfect together.
Nick declared today that he’s “Never worn a ring a single day in his life”, and this was evident as he tried it on his right hand. After correcting him, he put the ring on his left hand and quickly realized it was too tight. He freaked out a little as he struggled to get it off, and once he did he described wearing the ring as “being shackled.” He then asked if he could instead tie a leather string on it and wear it around his neck, or if he could possibly just tie a shoestring around his ring finger. I was not very thrilled at these requests.
After all that mess, we got Nick’s ring sized, picked up my mother’s dress and later met with Deborah Thomson – the owner of Figgie Photography, and the lady who will be doing our engagement photos in May.
If anyone is interested, she’s got a special going on right now for engagement shoots! Our 2hr session was only $150 for 100+ pictures and full printing rights. You can contact her through her website at http://www.figgiephotography.com
Next things on the list:
- Book and confirm cake
- Book flights to Hawaii
“Trash The Dress”
I came across Deborah’s photography a few weeks ago when I stumbled across these pictures on Facebook:
(These are pics of Matt and Heidee and their son, Noah – a few friends of mine!)
I really like her eye and artistic style, and so I sent an email asking about engagement photos and prices. She wrote me back and said she had a special going on – $150 for a 2-3hr session with 100-150 photos and full printing rights. That sounded super reasonable and so I wrote back and asked her to book us in! (You can check out her portfolio on her website – http://www.figgiephotography.com)
She also made mention of the “Trash The Dress” portfolio she’s been trying to build and asked if I’d be interested in doing a shoot free of charge. I came across this dress trashing concept in a magazine a while back, and for all of you who aren’t familiar with it, it’s basically a photoshoot of you in your bridal gown…well, trashing the dress! Running down the beach through the waves in it! Jumping in mud puddles! Running through a field! Fingerpainting! Whatever you want!
If I tell my mom about this I know she’ll have a bird, but I figure what better way to celebrate a gorgeous dress than capture on photo having fun and getting dirty in it? So of course I signed up!
Now I get to think of creative ways to trash my bridal gown…better that than having it all zipped up in the closet after the wedding!
Slowing down.
With the current state of chaos that is my life, the wedding planning has somewhat slowed. I have been formally advised to refrain from doing any sort of wedding planning at work (and rightfully so), but working full-time makes it difficult to get things done as quickly as I’d like. Things are changing quickly around these parts, and I feel that much more of my time will be devoted to work. Our various fundraising events are quickly approaching, and instead of designing my menus and wedding programs, I find myself spending more and more time bringing to life newspaper and other print ads for work. I had a moderate-sized freak-out yesterday night, as I have always been one to separate and define work and home. However, I now find that line blurred.
Despite the busy-ness, I have successfully designed and put together my invitations. I emailed off my wording to Adriana today and should have a proof in my hands sometime soon. Yesterday I received the timeshare confirmation certificate in the mail, and so a trip to the travel agent is in order to get flights planned. I am also meeting with Rene at Paesano’s Bakery in Tecumseh to discuss cake designs and figure out some price points.
Truth be told, I am a bit overwhelmed. My maid of honor lives in Hollywood, and what I’d give to have her close to me!!!
I have had my mini-breakdown already. It will likely be one of many.
Eight months to go.
Wedding date
I didn’t want to announce our wedding date, as it was only tentative, but considering that we put our deposit down at our reception site yesterday, I suppose it’s safe to tell everyone…
We will be getting married Friday, July 3rd, 2009. Unless plans change, the ceremony will take place at Riverside Baptist Church, with the reception following at La Zingara Trattoria on Erie Street.
We have pretty much finalized the dinner menu and have had a few tastings – everything is so delicious! The restaurant itself is beautiful as it is, and so we opted not to use a decorator and instead keep the focus on the food and wine.
Invitations will likely be sent out in April/May, and earlier for my out-of-towners.
Easy as 1, 2, 3.
1. Received an email while I was in Texas that the wedding gown I ordered is now ready for pickup. How’s that for service, huh? They had told me it’d be ready by December but I guess I’ll be over there sometime this week. Now if I could just figure out a way to get it over the border without paying duty…
2. While I had originally set out to make my own wedding invitations, I quickly realized how frustrating and time consuming it was. I met up with Adriana at Allegra Printing after finding out that this old high school friend had started doing invitations. A quote and proof should be ready sometime this week. I am excited to see what she will come up with.
3. Finalizing the reception menu and hashing out a tentative budget for the dinner will also be happening this month, too. I’m anxious to see what sort of dinners Pena has planned for us!
4. Honeymoon plans are also close to finalized. My Uncle Pan and Aunt Julie from California have so graciously given us use of their timeshare resort and we will be vacationing on the shores of Kauai for 7 days. Aloha, Hawaii! I am hoping that Nick and I can head to a travel agent sometime soon to get flights, rental cars and hotel transfers in order…
5. Still trying to figure out what to do for music…
6. Still waiting to book a meeting with our minister…
Despite the still-lingering uncertainties, we are in a good place right now. I really feel like Nick and I see each other now less than we ever did, but for once it isn’t bothersome. We survive on our once-a-day 10-15 minute phone conversation, maybe get together once a week for dinner and perhaps an episode of The Office! Our six-year anniversary will be coming up at the end of November and it’s crazy to think that we will be married on our 7th.
Dear Nick,
I have exhausted all attempts to refrain from speaking of you. In fact, I think the only posts where your name is mentioned are the first two or three. You desire privacy, and I respect that.
I appreciate your calm, cool, collected demeanor. Sorry for freaking out and crying the first week of our engagement. Someone broke the glass and pressed the panic button and I lost it for a sec, but I’m good now. Thanks for not asking for the ring back.
You’ve been so good and supportive in all the decisions we’ve had to make in regards to the planning thus far. That is excellent – I like a yes man. While I do not expect you to physically be present with me for every little detail and decision, I promise that I will run things by you in one way or another.
We are off to a fantastic start and so much more ahead of the game than I expected.
The only thing I ask is that you please inform your Uncle Rob that you are indeed “Dr. John”. Like, ASAP. It’d be great if you quash the “Jasmine is having an affair with a doctor” rumor before it runs rampant, thanks.
Love,
Fiancee
Wishlist
My Aunt Nilda, who will be standing in our wedding as a godparent/primary sponsor, approached me about a bridal shower.
To be honest, I hadn’t even thought about it simply because the prospect of planning a wedding was overwhelming enough!
She was insistent, however, claiming that having a bridal shower was a tradition, and that she was willing to host it if necessary. I explained that Nick and I had everything we needed to begin a comfortable life together, and it’s true – we do. Like I previously mentioned, I’ve been on a couple shopping excursions in the States, picking up random things from Ikea and Target, but for the most part we’ve got everything we need. Anything else would only be for convenience.
But just for fun I started browsing the Ikea and Target websites. The one thing I am really looking forward to is getting to go shopping with Nick for furniture and small appliances – things that’ll make our already comfortable home a little more home-y.
Here is a sample of my wishlist!
KitchenAid Mixer (for the mashed potatoes I’m going to need to learn how to make!)
Oster Beehive Chrome Blender (for our breakfast protein shakes)
KitchenAid Food Processor
George Foreman grill (which I plan to use as a panini grill too!)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Besides that, our “to be purchased” list also includes a dining room table, maybe a new mattress. I am trying to convince him to splurge on a Tempurpedic mattress, and I’m hoping that the Art Van Clearance Center will have some on sale if we ever get a chance to go.
