I promised that I would write up a summary of all my vendors that I used for my wedding which was in Austin, TX, so here you go. I hope you find it useful. If you have used some of these vendors before, feel free to leave your own comments too!
Hair - Jennifer with A'Salon on Jollyville Road - Jennifer is my regular hair stylist, but when I was looking to get my hair done for the wedding I had this weird preconceived notion that I needed to use a "wedding" specialist. I did two trials with different girls, and eventually decided on Bella's Ball. However after she arrived late to my bridal shoot, and my curls fell out an hour into the shoot, I knew I needed someone else. One day Jennifer finished off my hair cut by giving me a curly look using just a straitening iron. It was amazing and it held all day. I immediately booked her to do my hair and my moms and my girls. Oh yea, and because she doesn't bill out just as a "wedding" specialist, her prices are ridiculously reasonable. My dad was shocked when he saw the bill, he said it was too low! Jennifer is amazing and I would highly recommend her to anyone. My curls stayed in all night and my hair usually never holds a curl.
Makeup - Rhea McCarter - Rhea is wonderful. I did a trial makeup session with two girls and Rhea was by far the best. I would highly recommend doing a trial because she really needs to get a feeling for what you want and you need to decide what you like too. We did my trial and we did a trial for my mom. I was really glad because it meant that my bridal shoot makeup and especially my day of makeup was perfect! I was really happy with the natural look that she gave me. And she's so much fun to work with. Really sweet and really talented.
Limo - Cynthia's Manhattan Limo - Clean and on time. What else can you say. The driver was good and picked everyone up either early or on time and when we left something in the limo, he came back to give it to us. I used them to take us from the house to the salon and then to the ceremony/reception.
Getaway Car - Enchanted Antique Limos - My husband didn't want to use a limo as our getaway car, so we rented a Rolls Royce from Enchanted Antique Limos. The car was beautiful and clean and the driver was very nice. He took us from south Austin up to the Driskill and took all back roads to make the drive nicer. He also drove us straight up congress toward the capitol and asked if we wanted to drive up to the capitol to take some more shots. We were too tired at that point, but it was a nice offer.
Venue - The Hummingbird House - Oh my god this place is amazing. I must have looked at 30+ venues before I found this place. The grounds are perfect and in the middle of a drought you would never expect for a place like this to exist. The reason why it is so beautiful is because the owner also owns The Great Outdoors nursery on South Congress. The ceremony is outside and the reception is held under a beautiful white fabric draped tent. All the trees are wrapped in LED lights to make for an enchanted evening. The grooms suite is a little small, but the bridal suite is in the main house and is 3 rooms. They also went out of their way to help my mom out who is handicapped. Guest bathrooms will surprise you.
Day of Coordinator - Lauren & Danny @ The Hummingbird House - I wasn't sure if I should put this above or give it its own section. Lauren and Danny run The Hummingbird House, but if you ask, they will act as your day of coordinator for a small up-charge. I paid this and it was sooooo worth it. First of all, at the time that I got married the fee for their day of services was very very affordable, especially compare to other day-of coordinators. Lauren is amazing. This girl is just as organized as I am, and that's saying something. She truly will go out of her way to make your day exactly as you want it. And she will email you back in a timely fashion, which is so important. I was very grateful to have her and Danny coordinating everything on my big day. If you get married at The Hummingbird House, use them!
Flowers - Trisha from Visual Lyrics Floral Art in Cedar Park, TX - This is a hard one to review. First the end product - The flowers were amazing. Just beautiful. I did a large bouquet of roses for my bouquet (40-50), and I used roses, white calla lilies, and pink bom orchids for the girls and the mothers bracelets, pink bom orchids for the guys, white roses for the dads, a long greenery piece with small spray roses for the front of my moms electric scooter, 4-5 roses for the toss bouquet, 1 orchid and 1 rose floating in tall vases with lights and black beads for the cocktails, and roses, lilies and orchids for the big tables. She also put together a huge red rose display for the center of the food tables. She was on time dropping everything off and she picked up the vases afterward. The reason I say it is hard to review her is because she is terrible at getting back to you. At one point I must have called and left 3 messages and 3 emails for her. I couldn't even get a hold of her to pay my balance until it was like a week late. I guess you could say she is laid back, but as a bride, I would have liked a little more interaction and response. Her prices are reasonable compare to others. In the end I would probably recommend her because the work was flawless, just be prepared to have some communication issues.
Cakes - Heidi at Envy Pastries - These cakes were amazing. Heidi made two cakes for my big day, one traditional and one grooms cake. The traditional cake was covered in white fondant and decorated in white lace icing. It was huge! The 5 layers from top to bottom were: 6" White Godiva Chocolate with strawberries and cream filling, 9" Carrot Cake, 12" Vanilla Bean with lemon mascarpone filling, 15" Chocolate with peanut butter moose filling and mini Reeses peanut butter cups, 18" White Godiva Chocolate with strawberries and cream filling. The cake was gorgeous! The grooms cake was a 1:1 replica of my husbands guitar and it was chocolate cake with raspberry filling. Again, just amazing. Each layer was 4 layers of cake an 3 layers of filling. While the vanilla cake was a bit dry, I loved the chocolate and I highly recommend working with Heidi. But get on her schedule early, because she only does one cake a day.
String Quartet - Musical Discovery Chamber Players - These four musicians are wonderful. They played from 30 minutes before the wedding through the cocktail hour. You can find many of their pieces on you tube and I highly highly recommend them if you are looking for a quartet to play during your ceremony. The only thing I wish was that we would have put them closer to the ceremony site or hooked them up with a microphone. Probably just putting them 5-8 feet closer would have been nice. They did a very nice job with Canon in D as well as our exit song, The Wedding March. Jill, the coordinator of the group, is very nice and so easy to work with. The first time she played Canon in D for my parents was when we met them at a bridal show, and I knew right away that we were about to hand them a check to guarantee our spot on their calendar.
Band - The Matchmaker Band - These guys are awesome. They are a 10 piece band and they really made our night excellent. They are so much fun and do a great job getting people onto the dance floor. Two weeks before the wedding we sent them a list of songs that were sorted into tiers: must play, 1st choices, 2nd choices, and a 'do not play' list. This really helped them put together a set list that we would like and that we felt our guests would enjoy. Their sound guy, Alex, is great. He really worked with us and the Hummingbird House to keep the music at a perfect level for dancing while not being too loud. I highly recommend these guys. Also, they tend to play at the Highball in Austin on Monday nights if you want to check them out.
Photographer - Beverly Demafiles - Beverly and her husband, David, are awesome. I've used her three times now, to do my engagement photos, my bridal shots, and my wedding photography. Her style is journalistic, in that she works to tell the story of the day through her shots. I love that her photos are full of color (or some black and white) and aren't overly artistic or styled with Photoshop. They are what I think of as true photos. Both her and David do a really great job of capturing the moment. There were so many great action shots from the wedding that we are having trouble narrowing them down. I love that they both come ready to do whatever is necessary to get the shot. There were several times that I saw Bev on the ground shooting up just to capture the moment. She's not afraid to get right into the action and her eye for great unique shots is unmatched. The other thing that struck me was this. The week before the wedding I sent her a list of my "must have shots." Right after the ceremony when we were taking pictures, I saw David standing there with the list in his hand making sure we got all the shots that I wanted, and they did! It made me feel instantly at ease because I knew nothing would get overlooked. They captured so many details from the day, I love them!
Videographer - Wes Shepard of New Road Productions - We met Wes at a bridal show the January before our October wedding. We hadn't thought much about having a videographer at the wedding, but when I saw his videos, I knew we had to hire him right away. Him and his assistant worked great with Beverly and David to make sure no one was in each others way the day of the wedding. And they both came out to the Hummingbird House the weekend before to plan out the day, which was nice. I didn't even notice Wes was around videoing until the last few dances when the night got really dark and the light on his camera started to be ever-so-slightly annoying. But it was so dark he had to have a light on somewhere if he wanted to capture the moment, and it wasn't that bright. For the ceremony he hooked Jeremy up with a lapel mic to record the vows and the pastor, but you could hardly see it as he placed it right behind the flower. He also worked with me to create a video package that was just what I wanted. I highly recommend that you try to get a videographer if you can afford it, and I recommend Wes.
Linens - Premiere Party Central, Manchaca Road. - They have a great selection of linens and other necessities for your day, especially helpful if you need to provide these things for your event. If you go here just make sure you work with Kelly and only Kelly. I found most of the other staff to be less than helpful and often making my life a headache. They have a huge sale in January/February where you can get linens half off if you reserve them during their sale period. (note, my wedding was in October, but I was able to take advantage of this sale)
Caterer - An Affair to Remember Catering (AATR) - This one is also hard for me to review. Let me start with the good. The food is amazing. Hands down better than Pink Avocado or Sterling (of these two I'd pick Sterling for food). The other reason why I initially chose these guys was because they seemed like a smaller operation than Sterling. That is to say, they seemed a bit more local and not quite so much of a large corporation. I worked mainly with Matthew, and this is really where my impression of the company started to go downhill. Matthew likes to talk, a lot. But that also means that he is not listening to you and what you want. He spends more time explaining why he hasn't gotten something done than just doing it, and more likely than not you will have to hound him down the weeks before your wedding. AATR does some of their glass and plate rentals through Premiere (above) and then they send you the inventory list for you to double check, even though you always go through AATR. Matthew kept blaming Premiere for why the order was wrong, but it took me 10 minutes and one phone call to Kelly to get it all straightened out. In my mind, I shouldn't have to do my caterers job. Matthew kept telling me what he wanted to do for the table arrangement on the day of my wedding, and it took me more than 3 occasions to finally explain to him that it was my wedding and we were doing what I wanted. I should have known then to fire him. Oh and two weeks before the wedding I sent him a text message asking why I didn't have my final invoice yet. His response was "which bride is this?" To which I replied "Oh, I see I'm not the only one waiting for you to get back to them." This is consistently Matthew. The day of the wedding the food was great, but there wasn't enough! Not because I didn't order enough, but because they couldn't produce it fast enough. My dad went back to the kitchen when the food ran out and the response he got was "people are eating too fast" Are you kidding me! You know 100 people are going to rush a tent, you need that food ready, or you need to bring more help. At one point the water station was empty and my dad again had to go back and find someone to fill it. Horrible! And then I found out through a guest that they ran out of lime juice. Why? Because the bartenders were making the wrong ratio of lime juice to tequila for the margarita drinks so they ran out of juice. But Matthew didn't come tell me this, so I, the bride, had to go to the kitchen and bitch him out. I *think* they eventually got more. My parents and I are now in the process of trying to get the company to refund the money that we are due because of all these disasters. Oh yea, and the pasta bar was to have 4 burner stations, but one didn't work and they didn't bring any backups, so they only had 3. Why would a reputable caterer not bring backups? Oh and although we went over the wine/margarita glass order about 20 times, they were still wrong. Which means I paid for something I didn't get. Unless this company shapes up and fires Matthew, for all the headaches that I had, I can't recommend them. Yes, their food is the best, but I can't imagine telling any other bride to go through what I went through with Matthew. Oh and their "chef's station" is a joke, avoid that. I'm happy that my guests got food and didn't realize too much what a disaster this caterer was. If you're set on using this company just make sure that you get a different planner than Matthew, and perhaps you'll be okay.
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Some wedding hints, for all you brides
Since the wedding a few of my friends have asked me what I learned and what pointers I could give them for their weddings. Here are a few things that I realized at the wedding that I didn't think too much about before hand. If you're getting married soon, you may want to take notes.
1. flip flops are a must! I had 4 water blisters on my feet from my shoes. Of course I didn't realize it that night, but the next morning they hurt. And if you do get water blisters, just pop them with a pin and squeeze out the water, it's painless cause the skin is dead already. Then put on a bandaid. That should take most of the pain away.
2. make sure your emergency kit is well stocked with large and small safety pins (large ones were key for me), bandaids, straws, razor, straight pins, powder, lipstick, crochet hooks, etc. I won't go fully into mine right now, but take a look at the many examples online.
3. make sure they put plenty of tacks in your dress for bustling. The seamstress will tell you only "x" number are needed, but that's for a typical wedding, where people aren't dancing their ass off. Granted, my dress was lace, but the first time someone stepped on the dress the lace got pulled out of the buttons and the bustle fell out in no time. I would ask for at least 3 more than what she recommends and/or make sure she really really re-enforces the tacks. When all else fails use large safety pins (see point 2)
4. also regarding the bustle, make sure none of is dragging on the ground. when she did mine, she left some dragging so it still looked like a mini-train. This looks nice but is terrible for dancing. I tripped on my own dress a few times and the bottom was completely black by the end of the night. You want it all off the ground if you plan on dancing a lot.
5. something will go wrong, and it will be okay. the two big things that went wrong on my wedding day were, 1 - the caterer didn't get all the food out fast enough. and 2 - they ran out of lime juice. This was the most problematic because they started serving straight tequila. Even though I went and yelled at the caterer, there was nothing that could be done until more juice got there. Oh yea, and I also lost a side diamond out of my engagement ring 2 hours before the wedding. But my dad got it fixed! Like I said, something will go wrong. Try to laugh it off.... Try.
6. make sure there is one person who is responsible for getting the groom to the wedding and that person is not responsible for anyone else. Because my soon-to-be husbands family was sharing cars, his brother had to take him and his cousin and one of his other groomsmen to the wedding. Of course running around and getting everyone coordinated meant that he got there later than he wanted and missed having the photographer get more than like one or two pictures of him getting ready. Plus, you don't need that stress!
7. if you think your dress may fall down in the front, use Curvana tape. it may leave a slight rash on your skin by the end of the night, but my rash went away in like 2 days. That stuff is sticky! If you do use it, put it on the dress the night before and create yourself a peel tab to quickly pull the back off to stick it to yourself. In fact, just try it before hand and you'll see its kinda a pain to use, but it works really well. You can get it at Michaels and yes they have it, so don't let them tell you that they don't, because I found that the people there just didn't know what it was. It's in a red tape dispenser.
8. make sure you eat! I went to the grocery store the day before and got a finger sandwiches plate and a fruit plate to take in the limo and to the hair stylist. Just before I got my makeup done I brushed my teeth and stopped eating (though I did have some cucumbers and water at the venue). Also, bring a straw for once your lipstick is done and you want some water. You can bring touchup makeup if you want, but I found that I just forgot to us it! And the lipstick really stayed well the whole time I cared about. Really after pictures you stop caring anyway. The only thing that I used a few time was this white powder to take the sweat glare away. I had my dad hold that for me since he had pockets. I also used it on him! :)
9. Relax! I think we started about 15 minutes late, and it was okay! I was even ready before that. Take your time to really take it all in. I took some time to peer out the window and watch people sign the guest book. It was fun.
10. Even though I had a copy of the photos that I wanted, I was instantly relaxed to see my photographers assistant holding his copy that I had emailed them earlier in the week. Make sure your photographer has a "must take" list and give it to a friend if you don't see them carrying it around. It was nice to have all the pictures that I wanted written down, because you will forget. And at some point you'll just be so pre occupied that you'll say "oh I don't care." I did that once and the photographer looked at me and said "really?!?!?" and then I was like "yea, you're right, lets take that one."
11. speaking of photos, take the time to take the ones that you want. at the end of the night the photographer grabbed us and said "lets do some tree shots" We didn't want to leave the party but we did and they are some of the best shots of the night. We were really happy that we took them. When we got back to the dance floor, my friend who is recently married said to me "I wish we would have taken more pictures, you'll be happy you did that" And I am! I think it took us about 1 hour after the ceremony for pictures and then maybe another 20 minutes during the reception. You won't miss much but you'll be happy to have that time just the two of you (well and the photographer/videographer). We missed the cocktail hour, but I think most brides do.
12. have a list of everything that needs to leave and possible people who can take it. it's hard to have a list of exactly who should have what, so I would just be simple. Here are the 20 things that have to leave, here are 5 people who can take them.
13. have a good 'day of person' who can make sure everything is running smoothly. Lauren, my coordinator, was great. She didn't interrupt anything but she found lulls to make sure we did the cake and the bouquet toss. We also did the toasts first to get them out of the way. Even though I'm sure 1/2 the people didn't even hear, but that's okay.
14. Have fun. Make sure to say quick "hello" to people but then let them come to you on the dance floor, they will! Everyone says "oh you wont get to eat, you won't get to dance." Well I ate, and I danced and I let people come to me. I remember the whole night because I was on my schedule and didn't feel like I was under pressure to say "hi" to everyone right away. People understand that it is your wedding. Also, having a sweetheart table to put your food and drinks and purse and bouquet on is nice.
Hope this helps you brides out there have the most awesome wedding ever... just like I did!
1. flip flops are a must! I had 4 water blisters on my feet from my shoes. Of course I didn't realize it that night, but the next morning they hurt. And if you do get water blisters, just pop them with a pin and squeeze out the water, it's painless cause the skin is dead already. Then put on a bandaid. That should take most of the pain away.
2. make sure your emergency kit is well stocked with large and small safety pins (large ones were key for me), bandaids, straws, razor, straight pins, powder, lipstick, crochet hooks, etc. I won't go fully into mine right now, but take a look at the many examples online.
3. make sure they put plenty of tacks in your dress for bustling. The seamstress will tell you only "x" number are needed, but that's for a typical wedding, where people aren't dancing their ass off. Granted, my dress was lace, but the first time someone stepped on the dress the lace got pulled out of the buttons and the bustle fell out in no time. I would ask for at least 3 more than what she recommends and/or make sure she really really re-enforces the tacks. When all else fails use large safety pins (see point 2)
4. also regarding the bustle, make sure none of is dragging on the ground. when she did mine, she left some dragging so it still looked like a mini-train. This looks nice but is terrible for dancing. I tripped on my own dress a few times and the bottom was completely black by the end of the night. You want it all off the ground if you plan on dancing a lot.
5. something will go wrong, and it will be okay. the two big things that went wrong on my wedding day were, 1 - the caterer didn't get all the food out fast enough. and 2 - they ran out of lime juice. This was the most problematic because they started serving straight tequila. Even though I went and yelled at the caterer, there was nothing that could be done until more juice got there. Oh yea, and I also lost a side diamond out of my engagement ring 2 hours before the wedding. But my dad got it fixed! Like I said, something will go wrong. Try to laugh it off.... Try.
6. make sure there is one person who is responsible for getting the groom to the wedding and that person is not responsible for anyone else. Because my soon-to-be husbands family was sharing cars, his brother had to take him and his cousin and one of his other groomsmen to the wedding. Of course running around and getting everyone coordinated meant that he got there later than he wanted and missed having the photographer get more than like one or two pictures of him getting ready. Plus, you don't need that stress!
7. if you think your dress may fall down in the front, use Curvana tape. it may leave a slight rash on your skin by the end of the night, but my rash went away in like 2 days. That stuff is sticky! If you do use it, put it on the dress the night before and create yourself a peel tab to quickly pull the back off to stick it to yourself. In fact, just try it before hand and you'll see its kinda a pain to use, but it works really well. You can get it at Michaels and yes they have it, so don't let them tell you that they don't, because I found that the people there just didn't know what it was. It's in a red tape dispenser.
8. make sure you eat! I went to the grocery store the day before and got a finger sandwiches plate and a fruit plate to take in the limo and to the hair stylist. Just before I got my makeup done I brushed my teeth and stopped eating (though I did have some cucumbers and water at the venue). Also, bring a straw for once your lipstick is done and you want some water. You can bring touchup makeup if you want, but I found that I just forgot to us it! And the lipstick really stayed well the whole time I cared about. Really after pictures you stop caring anyway. The only thing that I used a few time was this white powder to take the sweat glare away. I had my dad hold that for me since he had pockets. I also used it on him! :)
9. Relax! I think we started about 15 minutes late, and it was okay! I was even ready before that. Take your time to really take it all in. I took some time to peer out the window and watch people sign the guest book. It was fun.
10. Even though I had a copy of the photos that I wanted, I was instantly relaxed to see my photographers assistant holding his copy that I had emailed them earlier in the week. Make sure your photographer has a "must take" list and give it to a friend if you don't see them carrying it around. It was nice to have all the pictures that I wanted written down, because you will forget. And at some point you'll just be so pre occupied that you'll say "oh I don't care." I did that once and the photographer looked at me and said "really?!?!?" and then I was like "yea, you're right, lets take that one."
11. speaking of photos, take the time to take the ones that you want. at the end of the night the photographer grabbed us and said "lets do some tree shots" We didn't want to leave the party but we did and they are some of the best shots of the night. We were really happy that we took them. When we got back to the dance floor, my friend who is recently married said to me "I wish we would have taken more pictures, you'll be happy you did that" And I am! I think it took us about 1 hour after the ceremony for pictures and then maybe another 20 minutes during the reception. You won't miss much but you'll be happy to have that time just the two of you (well and the photographer/videographer). We missed the cocktail hour, but I think most brides do.
12. have a list of everything that needs to leave and possible people who can take it. it's hard to have a list of exactly who should have what, so I would just be simple. Here are the 20 things that have to leave, here are 5 people who can take them.
13. have a good 'day of person' who can make sure everything is running smoothly. Lauren, my coordinator, was great. She didn't interrupt anything but she found lulls to make sure we did the cake and the bouquet toss. We also did the toasts first to get them out of the way. Even though I'm sure 1/2 the people didn't even hear, but that's okay.
14. Have fun. Make sure to say quick "hello" to people but then let them come to you on the dance floor, they will! Everyone says "oh you wont get to eat, you won't get to dance." Well I ate, and I danced and I let people come to me. I remember the whole night because I was on my schedule and didn't feel like I was under pressure to say "hi" to everyone right away. People understand that it is your wedding. Also, having a sweetheart table to put your food and drinks and purse and bouquet on is nice.
Hope this helps you brides out there have the most awesome wedding ever... just like I did!
Monday, November 14, 2011
You can call me Mrs. Rea
10.22.11 - What a day!
photo credit: Merrick Ales
I was planning on using this post to tell you all about my fabulous day, but I don't even know where to begin. First, the days before...
Actually first a disclaimer: There is only one picture in this post. It is above. The rest will come later when I can narrow down the 624 that my photographer took into something more manageable. The one above is from a friend who has his own other photography business.
Now, about the wedding...
The days before the wedding were spent hanging out with family and cousins and friends. It was nice to spend time with family before the festivities really got started.
Important Note #1 - If you are getting married, try to spend time with your family BEFORE the wedding, as the day before, of, and after are CRAZY!
The day before the wedding we did the rehearsal at The Hummingbird House and then I took my bridesmaids for lunch and my mom treated us all to 90 minute massages! And boy did I need it! Then we got all dressed up and went to the rehearsal dinner at Sullivans in Austin. It was fabulous and they did a great job. Jeremy's dad did the first toast HERE and my dad followed up with the second HERE. Sullivans was even nice enough to make up unique menu's for us with our name and occasion on them. I would highly recommend using Sullivans in Austin for any private party you may be having. Pictures are HERE.
Important Note #2: If your camera does video, set it up on a wine glass (I literally did this) to record the parents toasts if they aren't doing them in front of your videographer. You'll be happy you did!
The morning of the wedding I was totally anxious. I went for a run and then took a walk with my flower girls. At 10:30 am the limo arrived to pick us up and take us to the salon to get our hair ready. It was great seeing the look on Kylea's (one of my flower girls) face when the limo showed up. She kept asking if we would ride in a limo and I told her "no." hehe, tricky :)
Side note: Because there are so many vendors, I'll use a different post to tell you about the vendors and such that I used for the wedding and give you a little review about each of them.
It was nice to have my girls at the salon with me and to have my mom and dad there. My mom looked wonderful and my dad was even treated to a hairdo complements of my hairstylist. Just as we were about to leave, I put on my engagement ring and found one of the stones to be missing! Yes gone! I quickly called the jewelry store and told them the situation. Fortunately they were right up the road and my parents, along with my wonderful bridesmaid Kristen Tan, were able to get it fixed in under 5 minutes. Thank you to all of you for dealing with this situation... 2 hours before the wedding!
We arrived down at the Hummingbird House around 3:30 and started to get ready. I organized a few things while my girls got ready, then my bridesmaid Kristen Shehab, helped me into my dress. I was standing there completely naked with my mom watching, my photographer watching (but not snapping pictures of course) and the videographer with his back turned, and in walks Jeremy's mom. I freaked out a little, but only because it was just unfortunate timing and I was naked! Sorry Sue, if the timing was just 2 minutes later that would have gone better!
Important Note #3: If you have a dress with buttons in the back, go to a craft store and buy a crochet hook. Actually buy two. One for your bridesmaids to put it on you, and one for your groom to take it off! It makes life go MUCH easier.
After doing the "first look" with my dad, not Jeremy, we snapped a few pictures and went back inside to relax a minute. Throughout the day I made sure to have food and water everywhere, so that I wouldn't forget to eat. I had veggies in the bridal suite and mini sandwiches from HEB at the salon. This helped a lot.
Pretty soon it was time. I wasn't nervous, in fact I was most nervous about my hair! I had to pull back some of the front ones because the wind picked up a little and I didn't want them blowing in my face. After all we were having an outdoor wedding. As we walked outside to get in position I remember telling my dad "it's just a walk, it's just a walk, don't make me cry my makeup will run!" haha. Of course it wasn't just a walk, it was one of the biggest days of my life! (I say one of, because I think there are many big moments in our lives).
My dad and I walked down the isle arm in arm to "Canon in D". I remember wanting to look at the crowd, but all I could focus on was Jeremy's eyes. My dad gave me away beautifully. During the ceremony I do remember taking a moment to "remember" it all and just be happy. We composed our own vows out of three that my Pastor had given us to look over. I'm not sure how much the microphone that Jeremy was wearing picked up, because I do distinctly remember choking up while repeating them. I'm also sure everyone in the back row didn't hear what we were saying, but that's okay. I mean really, you know the guests only show up for the cake anyway. :)
Karen and Tim did a great job with the readings and Pastor Lyn was excellent! I'm so happy he made it down from Pennsylvania to officiate our big day. It really meant a lot to me. After our first (and second) kiss, we exited to "The Wedding March". It was awesome.
After many pictures, the details of which I won't bore you with, we started the PARTY! My dad rode in on the back of my moms scooter which was pretty amusing. The parents and the bridal party were introduced to DC3 - "Saturday Night" and Jeremy and I were introduced to Mingo Fishtrap - "Bitta Honey," one of our favorite songs.
After the Best Man, Jeremy's brother Matt, and the Matron of Honor, my best friend Karen, did their toasts (on video, but I do not yet have), Jeremy and I did our first dance. We danced to a song called "I do" written by Jeremy and recorded by our friend, Alvero. It was so sweet. We even choreographed the dance. And although my dress bustle was too long (note about that in another post), it went great. The photographer got an awesome dip picture that you will just have to wait to see :) Okay okay, I give, here is a sneak peak. After our dance, my dad and I danced to Ray Allure's "My Daughter is a Bride." HERE is the slideshow that we played during our dance. Then Jeremy and his mom, Sue, danced to Elvis's "Loving You." HERE is their slideshow. There was some panic that the sound guy couldn't hook up to the computer, but we worked it out quickly by downloading the songs from iTunes and having someone hit play on the sound and the computer together. Isn't technology great.
The rest of the night we partied to the Matchmaker Band, a 10 piece band that did an awesome job. Our cake was amazing and the food tasted great. We had so much fun with our friends, and thank you to those who had to deal with some of the caterer issues (ahem, slow food & lack of lime juice for a few hours - though I didn't hear too many complaining about the straight tequila during that time). We are so happy that you all were able to join us and you made our evening spectacular! At the end of the night we did a sparkler exit and it was so much fun! Thank you to the Hummingbird House for letting us. Interestingly enough I had people come up to me the next day and tell me that drunks with sparklers isn't the *best* idea. Though they never told me it was the worst! We left the wedding in a Rolls Royce that Jeremy picked out and our photographer got an awesome 'Robin Hood' picture of us (see above sneak peek). After the wedding Jeremy and I went to the Driskill Downtown to spend our first night as husband and wife. (Apparently we left in just enough time to avoid some of the shenanigans afterwards, ahem Jake & Brandon).
Sunday morning we met about 30 people for brunch at The Salt Lick (and more cake!) and then we jetted off Monday to Hawaii... for 3 weeks! Man it's hard to be back, but I sure enjoy being Jeremy's Wife!
photo credit: Merrick AlesI was planning on using this post to tell you all about my fabulous day, but I don't even know where to begin. First, the days before...
Actually first a disclaimer: There is only one picture in this post. It is above. The rest will come later when I can narrow down the 624 that my photographer took into something more manageable. The one above is from a friend who has his own other photography business.
Now, about the wedding...
The days before the wedding were spent hanging out with family and cousins and friends. It was nice to spend time with family before the festivities really got started.
Important Note #1 - If you are getting married, try to spend time with your family BEFORE the wedding, as the day before, of, and after are CRAZY!
The day before the wedding we did the rehearsal at The Hummingbird House and then I took my bridesmaids for lunch and my mom treated us all to 90 minute massages! And boy did I need it! Then we got all dressed up and went to the rehearsal dinner at Sullivans in Austin. It was fabulous and they did a great job. Jeremy's dad did the first toast HERE and my dad followed up with the second HERE. Sullivans was even nice enough to make up unique menu's for us with our name and occasion on them. I would highly recommend using Sullivans in Austin for any private party you may be having. Pictures are HERE.
Important Note #2: If your camera does video, set it up on a wine glass (I literally did this) to record the parents toasts if they aren't doing them in front of your videographer. You'll be happy you did!
The morning of the wedding I was totally anxious. I went for a run and then took a walk with my flower girls. At 10:30 am the limo arrived to pick us up and take us to the salon to get our hair ready. It was great seeing the look on Kylea's (one of my flower girls) face when the limo showed up. She kept asking if we would ride in a limo and I told her "no." hehe, tricky :)
Side note: Because there are so many vendors, I'll use a different post to tell you about the vendors and such that I used for the wedding and give you a little review about each of them.
It was nice to have my girls at the salon with me and to have my mom and dad there. My mom looked wonderful and my dad was even treated to a hairdo complements of my hairstylist. Just as we were about to leave, I put on my engagement ring and found one of the stones to be missing! Yes gone! I quickly called the jewelry store and told them the situation. Fortunately they were right up the road and my parents, along with my wonderful bridesmaid Kristen Tan, were able to get it fixed in under 5 minutes. Thank you to all of you for dealing with this situation... 2 hours before the wedding!
We arrived down at the Hummingbird House around 3:30 and started to get ready. I organized a few things while my girls got ready, then my bridesmaid Kristen Shehab, helped me into my dress. I was standing there completely naked with my mom watching, my photographer watching (but not snapping pictures of course) and the videographer with his back turned, and in walks Jeremy's mom. I freaked out a little, but only because it was just unfortunate timing and I was naked! Sorry Sue, if the timing was just 2 minutes later that would have gone better!
Important Note #3: If you have a dress with buttons in the back, go to a craft store and buy a crochet hook. Actually buy two. One for your bridesmaids to put it on you, and one for your groom to take it off! It makes life go MUCH easier.
After doing the "first look" with my dad, not Jeremy, we snapped a few pictures and went back inside to relax a minute. Throughout the day I made sure to have food and water everywhere, so that I wouldn't forget to eat. I had veggies in the bridal suite and mini sandwiches from HEB at the salon. This helped a lot.
Pretty soon it was time. I wasn't nervous, in fact I was most nervous about my hair! I had to pull back some of the front ones because the wind picked up a little and I didn't want them blowing in my face. After all we were having an outdoor wedding. As we walked outside to get in position I remember telling my dad "it's just a walk, it's just a walk, don't make me cry my makeup will run!" haha. Of course it wasn't just a walk, it was one of the biggest days of my life! (I say one of, because I think there are many big moments in our lives).
My dad and I walked down the isle arm in arm to "Canon in D". I remember wanting to look at the crowd, but all I could focus on was Jeremy's eyes. My dad gave me away beautifully. During the ceremony I do remember taking a moment to "remember" it all and just be happy. We composed our own vows out of three that my Pastor had given us to look over. I'm not sure how much the microphone that Jeremy was wearing picked up, because I do distinctly remember choking up while repeating them. I'm also sure everyone in the back row didn't hear what we were saying, but that's okay. I mean really, you know the guests only show up for the cake anyway. :)
Karen and Tim did a great job with the readings and Pastor Lyn was excellent! I'm so happy he made it down from Pennsylvania to officiate our big day. It really meant a lot to me. After our first (and second) kiss, we exited to "The Wedding March". It was awesome.
After many pictures, the details of which I won't bore you with, we started the PARTY! My dad rode in on the back of my moms scooter which was pretty amusing. The parents and the bridal party were introduced to DC3 - "Saturday Night" and Jeremy and I were introduced to Mingo Fishtrap - "Bitta Honey," one of our favorite songs.
After the Best Man, Jeremy's brother Matt, and the Matron of Honor, my best friend Karen, did their toasts (on video, but I do not yet have), Jeremy and I did our first dance. We danced to a song called "I do" written by Jeremy and recorded by our friend, Alvero. It was so sweet. We even choreographed the dance. And although my dress bustle was too long (note about that in another post), it went great. The photographer got an awesome dip picture that you will just have to wait to see :) Okay okay, I give, here is a sneak peak. After our dance, my dad and I danced to Ray Allure's "My Daughter is a Bride." HERE is the slideshow that we played during our dance. Then Jeremy and his mom, Sue, danced to Elvis's "Loving You." HERE is their slideshow. There was some panic that the sound guy couldn't hook up to the computer, but we worked it out quickly by downloading the songs from iTunes and having someone hit play on the sound and the computer together. Isn't technology great.
The rest of the night we partied to the Matchmaker Band, a 10 piece band that did an awesome job. Our cake was amazing and the food tasted great. We had so much fun with our friends, and thank you to those who had to deal with some of the caterer issues (ahem, slow food & lack of lime juice for a few hours - though I didn't hear too many complaining about the straight tequila during that time). We are so happy that you all were able to join us and you made our evening spectacular! At the end of the night we did a sparkler exit and it was so much fun! Thank you to the Hummingbird House for letting us. Interestingly enough I had people come up to me the next day and tell me that drunks with sparklers isn't the *best* idea. Though they never told me it was the worst! We left the wedding in a Rolls Royce that Jeremy picked out and our photographer got an awesome 'Robin Hood' picture of us (see above sneak peek). After the wedding Jeremy and I went to the Driskill Downtown to spend our first night as husband and wife. (Apparently we left in just enough time to avoid some of the shenanigans afterwards, ahem Jake & Brandon).
Sunday morning we met about 30 people for brunch at The Salt Lick (and more cake!) and then we jetted off Monday to Hawaii... for 3 weeks! Man it's hard to be back, but I sure enjoy being Jeremy's Wife!
Monday, October 17, 2011
What to do when you're selling a house and the buyers inspector is an idiot
So we are selling the Austin house. It just doesn't seem like much sense to keep it at this point, considering we could spend every night at the Driskill for the amount we are paying for a "weekend house."
After some time on the market, and finding a good selling price (at first we were way too high), we found a buyer. Negotiations took longer than I'd hope, but we finally settled on a price that we could both live with. Then the fun started.
We signed the contract on a Friday and by Saturday she had her inspector out there. Excellent. Let me first start by telling you it was Jerry Schmidt with SunView Inspections. That's important to know, as I don't want any of you all to fall into this trap with him.
So guy shows up Saturday morning and starts the inspection. I get a call shortly after from my realtor. He's locked himself out of the garage and can't get in, so he is leaving without completing the inspection. What genius did was short the GFCI outlets on the outside of the house to "test" them. This caused all the breakers to trip including the garage door. Since the breaker was tripped the remote didn't work. Now, I only have one access into the garage, and it's from the outside of the house. Therefore, if you cannot use the remote to get in the house, you need a key, which he did not have. My puzzlement came when he 1) did not make sure he could get into the garage after tripping said breakers and 2) what he said to me next. Which was, "well there is usually a latch that you can flip to get into the garage, and you don't have that." Well of course I don't! If I did, that means that anyone could get into the garage simply by shorting the outlets. Why would that make sense?!?!
So I was in DC and told my realtor that I had said garage keys but if he wanted in before the week was out he would have to get a locksmith out there. And that's just what he did. Now, if the inspector wanted to do this test, he should have told me in advance that he would need the keys. Or 2, and probably smarter, would have been to realize that he couldn't do the test because he didn't have keys to get into the garage. Ugh. Idiot.
So a few days later her gets back into the garage and the house and submits the report to the buyer.
Apparently he found a "live" wire under the house that was "spliced" and "missing plate covers." This was odd considering the wiring in the house was completely redone and there were no active wires left. But I called the electrician and had him go out there. He saw some wires and said "no, they are not active." So now we have a he said, she said. The buyer believes her inspector even though I have a real electrician and a city inspector (from when the fire occurred) saying that these wires are not live. Keep in mind, said inspector provides no pictures or locations as to where this wire is. Just a short 2 sentence note to make my life hell.
So my realtor meets with her inspector this morning and they both look at the "live" wire. The inspector says that he gets a "weird" reading when he measures it one way, but then no reading when it is measured the other way. He's "not sure." So now he's created a firestorm with his "I'm not sure" measuring.
5 hours later my realtor meets with the electrician... again. They find the wire and measure it. Yep, NOT active. They decide to remove it just to appease the inspector who appeases the buyer. The electrician says "your inspector either has an old tool, the batteries are dying, or he doesn't know what he is doing" I'm going with the third.
Oh, and one final note. When I showed up on Friday the two back doors were completely unlocked. Yep, the inspector didn't lock them! If you are in my house, I expect a level of professionalism and respect. You did not respect my house or my stuff enough to lock up after you left. And to that, I am most appalled.
After some time on the market, and finding a good selling price (at first we were way too high), we found a buyer. Negotiations took longer than I'd hope, but we finally settled on a price that we could both live with. Then the fun started.
We signed the contract on a Friday and by Saturday she had her inspector out there. Excellent. Let me first start by telling you it was Jerry Schmidt with SunView Inspections. That's important to know, as I don't want any of you all to fall into this trap with him.
So guy shows up Saturday morning and starts the inspection. I get a call shortly after from my realtor. He's locked himself out of the garage and can't get in, so he is leaving without completing the inspection. What genius did was short the GFCI outlets on the outside of the house to "test" them. This caused all the breakers to trip including the garage door. Since the breaker was tripped the remote didn't work. Now, I only have one access into the garage, and it's from the outside of the house. Therefore, if you cannot use the remote to get in the house, you need a key, which he did not have. My puzzlement came when he 1) did not make sure he could get into the garage after tripping said breakers and 2) what he said to me next. Which was, "well there is usually a latch that you can flip to get into the garage, and you don't have that." Well of course I don't! If I did, that means that anyone could get into the garage simply by shorting the outlets. Why would that make sense?!?!
So I was in DC and told my realtor that I had said garage keys but if he wanted in before the week was out he would have to get a locksmith out there. And that's just what he did. Now, if the inspector wanted to do this test, he should have told me in advance that he would need the keys. Or 2, and probably smarter, would have been to realize that he couldn't do the test because he didn't have keys to get into the garage. Ugh. Idiot.
So a few days later her gets back into the garage and the house and submits the report to the buyer.
Apparently he found a "live" wire under the house that was "spliced" and "missing plate covers." This was odd considering the wiring in the house was completely redone and there were no active wires left. But I called the electrician and had him go out there. He saw some wires and said "no, they are not active." So now we have a he said, she said. The buyer believes her inspector even though I have a real electrician and a city inspector (from when the fire occurred) saying that these wires are not live. Keep in mind, said inspector provides no pictures or locations as to where this wire is. Just a short 2 sentence note to make my life hell.
So my realtor meets with her inspector this morning and they both look at the "live" wire. The inspector says that he gets a "weird" reading when he measures it one way, but then no reading when it is measured the other way. He's "not sure." So now he's created a firestorm with his "I'm not sure" measuring.
5 hours later my realtor meets with the electrician... again. They find the wire and measure it. Yep, NOT active. They decide to remove it just to appease the inspector who appeases the buyer. The electrician says "your inspector either has an old tool, the batteries are dying, or he doesn't know what he is doing" I'm going with the third.
Oh, and one final note. When I showed up on Friday the two back doors were completely unlocked. Yep, the inspector didn't lock them! If you are in my house, I expect a level of professionalism and respect. You did not respect my house or my stuff enough to lock up after you left. And to that, I am most appalled.
Sunday, October 9, 2011
I just finished my second Army Ten Miler... And I'm getting married in 13 days!
This was a rough year, with the wedding only 13 days away, I haven't trained that much at all. In fact I've only done one 5 mile run all season. So I knew this was going to be a difficult run.
We started off by getting dropped off 2 miles from the start. We wanted to get closer, obviousy, but the roads closed at 7 instead of 7:30 like they told us. Plus, we were running late so we had to "jog" part of the way there. I say "jog," because the boys were jogging, but I was at my running pace. We got to the start at 7:45 and took a quick bathroom break before getting in line by 7:50. This year Jeremy and I were able to start together, but that only lasted for about 1/100th of a mile. He took off quickly, while I just tried to catch my breath.
Here is a breakdown of my miles. The first two were awesome for me, but then I started to hurt. Around mile 4 I started to hurt bad. My left hip and knee started to hurt and I didn't want push it. Even so I was pretty happy just to finish.
Mile 1 : 9:02 (8:06 max)
Mile 2 : 9:22
Mile 3 : 10:45
Mile 4 : 11:02
Mile 5 : 12:32
Mile 6 : 14:18
Mile 7 : 12:53
Mile 8 : 13:34
Mile 9 : 13:21
Mile 10 : 13:15
Overall : 10.18 miles in 2:02:19
Last year I did 1:45, but I also trained a LOT more. So I'm proud that I can still walk!
Now just 13 more days and it's wedding day!
We started off by getting dropped off 2 miles from the start. We wanted to get closer, obviousy, but the roads closed at 7 instead of 7:30 like they told us. Plus, we were running late so we had to "jog" part of the way there. I say "jog," because the boys were jogging, but I was at my running pace. We got to the start at 7:45 and took a quick bathroom break before getting in line by 7:50. This year Jeremy and I were able to start together, but that only lasted for about 1/100th of a mile. He took off quickly, while I just tried to catch my breath.
Here is a breakdown of my miles. The first two were awesome for me, but then I started to hurt. Around mile 4 I started to hurt bad. My left hip and knee started to hurt and I didn't want push it. Even so I was pretty happy just to finish.
Mile 1 : 9:02 (8:06 max)
Mile 2 : 9:22
Mile 3 : 10:45
Mile 4 : 11:02
Mile 5 : 12:32
Mile 6 : 14:18
Mile 7 : 12:53
Mile 8 : 13:34
Mile 9 : 13:21
Mile 10 : 13:15
Overall : 10.18 miles in 2:02:19
Last year I did 1:45, but I also trained a LOT more. So I'm proud that I can still walk!
Now just 13 more days and it's wedding day!
Monday, September 5, 2011
47 days and counting...
Well the wedding is almost here and there is still LOTS to be done. The programs were finished up today with some help from Ami and Jeremy (thank you both), and the 'out-of-state' bags are being filled. Yep, you special people get a little treat when you arrive... IF you send me your hotel information, that is. I'm also finalizing the dinner menu, cake design, and tons of other little details. I've chosen to upgrade some of the flowers, but we'll see what the final cost comes out to on that. I *might* have gone a little overboard. I'm also looking into something fun for the morning of my wedding, but that's a secret until I figure out if I can afford it or not.
Besides the wedding plans, our Hawaii honeymoon is shaping up nicely. Jeremy is narrowing down the last hotel in Kauai (oceanfront), and we booked all the rental cars this morning. While Jeremy is okay with getting a convertible on Ohau I haven't convinced him into a convertible on Maui yet. Someone help me! Bombard him with texts telling him how awesome it will be to have a convertible on Maui! Has anyone done the road to Hana in a convertible before?
Besides the wedding plans, our Hawaii honeymoon is shaping up nicely. Jeremy is narrowing down the last hotel in Kauai (oceanfront), and we booked all the rental cars this morning. While Jeremy is okay with getting a convertible on Ohau I haven't convinced him into a convertible on Maui yet. Someone help me! Bombard him with texts telling him how awesome it will be to have a convertible on Maui! Has anyone done the road to Hana in a convertible before?
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Something Old
Today we got a package from Jeremy's mom, and in it was a nice little surprise for our wedding.
When Jeremy was a baby, his Aunt Gracie sewed him this bonnet...
And along with the bonnet came this note...
I'm just a little handkerchief,
Quite square as you can see.
But with a stitch or two,
They made a bonnet out of me.
I'll be worn home from the hospital,
Or on the Christening day.
Then neatly pressed and folded,
I'll be carefully packed away.
On her wedding day, a bride must have.
Traditionally something old.
Good luck, good health, and happiness,
It brings her, so its told.
Then what could be more pleasant,
Than to unpack little me.
To snip a stitch or two and find,
Her handkerchief I'll be.
And if I'm first word by a boy,
He'll surely someday wed.
Then he can give his lovely bride,
The hankey once wore on his head.
Now I have my something old, something new (earrings my parents bought me (along with many other things)), and something blue (my garter). I still have to find my something borrowed. I'll have to think about that for a while.
Wedding plans are now in full swing. Last weekend I took my bridal portraits with my photographer, Bev, and my friend, Kristen. We had a lot of fun, and I can't wait to see them. But don't ask to see them yourself, cause I'm keeping them under lock and key until after the wedding. We are also starting to get some RSVP's back from the invitations that went out a few weeks ago. It's really exciting to come home every day and find 3-4 more in the mailbox. We like to look at the postage stamp to see what city it came from and then try to guess who sent it.
Now it's all about doing programs, gifts, songs, and finalizing menues... oh yea, and picking hotels for our 19 day honeymoon in Hawaii!!!
Just 65 more days!
When Jeremy was a baby, his Aunt Gracie sewed him this bonnet...
And along with the bonnet came this note...
I'm just a little handkerchief,
Quite square as you can see.
But with a stitch or two,
They made a bonnet out of me.
I'll be worn home from the hospital,
Or on the Christening day.
Then neatly pressed and folded,
I'll be carefully packed away.
On her wedding day, a bride must have.
Traditionally something old.
Good luck, good health, and happiness,
It brings her, so its told.
Then what could be more pleasant,
Than to unpack little me.
To snip a stitch or two and find,
Her handkerchief I'll be.
And if I'm first word by a boy,
He'll surely someday wed.
Then he can give his lovely bride,
The hankey once wore on his head.
Now I have my something old, something new (earrings my parents bought me (along with many other things)), and something blue (my garter). I still have to find my something borrowed. I'll have to think about that for a while.
Wedding plans are now in full swing. Last weekend I took my bridal portraits with my photographer, Bev, and my friend, Kristen. We had a lot of fun, and I can't wait to see them. But don't ask to see them yourself, cause I'm keeping them under lock and key until after the wedding. We are also starting to get some RSVP's back from the invitations that went out a few weeks ago. It's really exciting to come home every day and find 3-4 more in the mailbox. We like to look at the postage stamp to see what city it came from and then try to guess who sent it.
Now it's all about doing programs, gifts, songs, and finalizing menues... oh yea, and picking hotels for our 19 day honeymoon in Hawaii!!!
Just 65 more days!
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