La Crosse Wedding

Friday, 11/16: Final Bridal Shower/ Rehearsal & Dinner!!!!  I was too excited to sleep again, I woke up at 530am and started delegating what was going to go into each car. My parents live in Rockwall, FI’s parents live in Allen, and the wedding is in McKinney,…I should have thought this through better! We pack up as many cars as we can and head to the hotel in McKinney. We stayed at a brand new La Quinta. And I k now what comes to mind when you say “La Quinta”, but this was BRAND NEW, as in we were some of the first people to stay there! And they were SOOO accomadating!! We held the bridal shower for the ladies of FI’s family who all came in from out of town. And the RD there!!!  We get all checked in, and I head up to my suite with my 3 sisters…walk into the room, and its not right..crap. I go down stairs and explain to the manager that my room isn’t right, there was supposed to be 2bedrooms, each with a king bed, and they were to be joined by a living area with a couch/queen bed…ours only had 1kig bed, and the pull out couch..  Now I don’t mean to sound spoiled, but there was going to be me, my 5BMs, 2 photographers, my mother, grandmother, 2 aunts, and 3 cousins all getting ready and snapping pictures…and the 3 FGs,  we needed all the room we could get. So after looking into it, they realized my reservation had been given to FI’s PARENTS!!!! Whats worse, is his parent’s didn’t offer to trade me..so the hotel compensated the room next to mine to allow for enough space! How sweet! My shower went really well!! The shower was thrown by FMIL, and FSIL, and rather then starting on time, they stalled the whole time, and made us late the rehearsal. Rehearsal was mass chaos. People got lost, people didn’t show, but ultimately we got it all figured out! Dinner went really well, we busted out the margarita machine, and everyone had fun!  FI, after agreeing that we wouldn’t do gifts, got me a gorgeous cross necklace, and made this super sweet speech about the premarital videos we watched, and how the necklace was to remind me to stay strong in my faith, and to always have faith in him. I cried! J I gave all my BMs their gifts, and they LOVED them!! Everyone stayed, and chatted, and slowly retreated to their rooms. I hung out with everyone until about 9pm, when my sister reminded me we still have stuff to do upstairs….extensions to be curled, and my bustle still needed to be done! So FI walked me up to my room, and we kissed goodnight for the last time as Mr. & Miss…. My sisters were busy running around the room getting stuff ready for  Saturday, while my BM Nicole, was making cocktails for the 2 of us! J Around 1030p we finished up and went to bed. I slept SO hard..I don’t think I moved all night!

Help!!! I'm looking to purchase about 65 Jarritos de barro for my wedding. I will be giving them out as wedding favors but my guest will also have the choice of drinking aguas de fruta(natural fruit water) with them.  I do not want to drive all the way to Tijuana to purchase them. Im sure L.A. has plenty of shops were i can purchase them. Anyone know of a specific one????

I'm working on our playlist right now and I would like to see what my PW family has scheduled to play at their wedding.

If you don't mind, please show me what you have planned to play for the wedding events...Cake cutting, bouquet/garter toss, bridal entrance, first dance etc.

OR

Your wedding "must play" party list...what do you plan on playing to keep the party going?

Or

just add a link to your bio if it's a lot.  It will really help me out.

I've already checked the PW wedding song feature, but I'm looking for more current songs.  I've definitely have the classics down already...just want a look at what current brides are doing (not that the list is out dated). 

TIA!

Yesterday, quite possibly, was the worst day of my life and the absolute worst day of wedding planning to date. As some of you may have seen, I had my final fitting a little less than 2 weeks ago in Las Vegas...everything went great, they had a few things to hem, take in, etc and they were overnighting it back to me. Yesterday, after anxiously awaiting its arrival, the dress finally came around 2pm. I rushed to my parents' house to try it on...

I put it on and walk out to show my mom and feel some stabbing on my legs/shins. I sit down and pull the dress up to find the lining still FULL OF PINS...it HAD NOT BEEN HEMMED. Seriously!? But the bigger problem was that it was still TOO BIG. I mean, really big. If I stood up straight with my shoulders back you could basically see down my dress. Just the view my 6'7' dad wants walking me down the aisle, right?! UGHHHHHHHH.

I immediately call the bridal boutique in Vegas (keep in mind I am in Iowa)--they think I am talking about my mom's dress (which they were also altering), I had to repeat that I was in fact talking about PINS still being in MY WEDDING DRESS. Needless to say, they were embarrassed. They gave me their FedEx tracking number to overnight the dress back to them. They will hem and alter it and overnight it back to me. Two concerns: 1. basically the fate of my wedding is in the hands of FedEx. 2. they are blind-altering my dress. Luckily, my mom had the smart idea to stop by my local seamstress and have her pin it so they have something to go on when taking it in. But it's not going to be an easy task--all of the beading I had added will have to be removed so they can take it in at the seams.

The worst part? I emailed the boutique to give them the tracking number and explain the pins from the seamstress, etc...she had the audacity to say "One thing I am thinking is the drinking and eating from the bachlorette party could have made you a little and I mean a little bloated and now that you are home all that bloat is gone." Are you kidding me!? I flew into Vegas late Thursday night, went out and had the fitting the next morning. Hardly enough time to gain an inch!! Plus, I didn't know one night of drinking could bloat your bust that much? If that's the case, I'd drink a lot more often ;) I mean, really. Bottom line...the dress wasn't taken in as planned. They obviously FORGOT to do it much like they did the hem. She didn't have an excuse for that one...

So, my wedding is now 9 DAYS away and I don't have my dress yet. Minor detail ;) I have had very little stress in the wedding planning process...just my luck that the only stress comes in a huge way for an even huger part of the wedding. PLEASE CROSS YOUR FINGERS FOR ME!!!!

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So my dh had another interview up in Portland this week - and it was super promising! The recruiter he has been working with also has submitted him for 2 other firms, so we are starting to feel like a new job and move is close on the horizon!

If he gets this job that he just interviewed for they will want him to start as soon as he can - so he would give 2 weeks notice to his current firm and then start right away I guess... I would think they might give him a couple of days to drive up there and pack and such, but I'm not really sure how long that would be.

We would like to purchase a home asap - so I am sure that as soon as he got the job we would go up there that weekend or the next and look at houses. There might be an issue with him not having worked for long enough at that job and having pay stubs and such but our agent up there said they are used to it and many times if you have a steady employment history otherwise they are cool.... 

So here is the question for you ladies... how would you deal with the move? I could stay down here until we had a house to move straight into with Ashlyn and my dh could stay with family up there or we could sublet a place for him and Ashlyn and I could visit and he could fly down here. The major pros of this is that we wouldn't have to move/pack/unpack twice and it wouldn't be such a rush to pack up this place. There would also be less moving for Ashlyn which I know is hard on babies some times... The major con being that it could take a month or more (most likely more considering how long it might take to close on a house) and that I would basically be a single parent and my dh wouldn't be around that much... I know we would try to see each other at the very least every two weeks or more, but it would still be hard.

Or we could all move up together and rent a place... the major con being that we would move twice, it would be stressful setting up a nursery and all of the stuff/toys/etc we need for Ashlyn in a completely temporary situation, but the major pro would be that we would be together (at least in the evenings when he wasn't working!!)

Thoughts? Anyone do this? It just seems so hard to jungle purchasing a home and moving to another state.... argh... 

What is your favorite resturant??

Mine:

• Mexican - Juan's Place in Berkeley
• Mexican - El Tapatio in Oakland
• Chinese - Uncle Chung's
• Yogurt - Yogurtland in Walnut Creek

One of things I really wanted to have in our wedding was a photo booth. My first time exposure to this phenomena was at my FI's former employer's company holiday party last year (2007). They rented a booth from Red Cheese and I really liked our pictures. =)

But, who knew it was going to be so expensive!! We pretty much crossed that item off our list...until we reduced our guest count and made some wiggle room.. and I did my share of research to convince FI that we could afford it! And now, I get to share what I found!

Let me also add that I've experienced FotoCabina at my friend's recent wedding. It was also fun to have! It was more popular than the Red Cheese one, probably because of the location of it. The Red Cheese booth seemed lonely!

But I must say - I liked the photos from both booths - so no complaints about either!

After days of googling, emailing, and clicking (on rates pages), I came up with the following vendors and rates list. Warning! This is NOT a complete list, and the rates are based on my following criteria:

• 4 hours
• attendant to man the booth
• unlimited pictures
• CD of all the digital images

After deciding on a photo booth company, these were other things I considered:

• print time - how long does it take to print each picture = the maximum number of pictures you could print
• quality of print - faster doesn't always mean bad quality..but it might

Also, these rates are 2008, so 2009 might be higher..

1. Sassy Booths - A Classic Booth from Sassy Booths start at $1,250, a Deluxe Booth (includes video) starts at $1,500. This rate is also for 5 hours, additional hours at $150/hour.
2. Red Cheese - Basic Package includes 4 hours of service starts at $1399 and $1749 for deluxe. (thanks for the info slurpee!)
3. Cheesy Photobooth - By far the cutest website! Their standard rate is $1,350, and includes scrapbook & supplies. Most companies have it separate.
4. Capital Photo Booths - 5 hours of rental starts at $1,500, but doesn't include CD of images! And to customize ANYTHING is extra - i.e. custom banner, custom booth color, custom etc...
   
5. PhotoBooth NOW - $1,299 (for a limited time!), and includes double prints. But a custom exterior would be extra.
6. Rent Photo Booths - Rates start at $695 $795 for 2 hours, and $975 $1075 for 4 hours (additional $140/hour). UPDATE Apparently, this is an unreputable company by rip off complaints such as this: http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/0/370/RipOff0370235.htm -- I would stay clear just to be safe! But do your own research by googling this company if you choose to use them anyway. =)
   
7. Rock Star Photobooth - Rates start at $1,300 and they claim to be the lowest price (includes tax) guaranteed! They don't seem to be, though. There are photo booths at lower prices, guaranteed! =P They tout "Price Match Guarantee", so if you want to use them, you can probably get them to give you a better price based on the info found on this page. =)
   
8. YourPhotoBooths.com - Rates start at $600 for 2 hours, or $800 $995 (new rates) for 4 hours. This includes props and customizable backdrop color. I think he also said the booth color itself can be customized to match your wedding colors, too (no additional charge). Tuan is also a photographer - please check him out at two1studio.com. He has changed the website to http://www.instabooths.com/
   
9. Hollywood Photo Booth - Rate starts at $1,175 (it went down since I last checked), and is free delivery/set-up within the greater LA area limit. If you want OC, then expect to pay a fee.
10. Festive Photo Booths - Rates start at $700 (Silver Package), but it is NOT unlimited photos (up to 100 guests). For the Gold Package, expect to pay $1,000 for 5 hours. But if you want 8 hours, then go Platinum for $1,500. If we wanted 8 hours, we'd probably choose this vendor.
    
11. Photo Booth Scrapbooks -  Obviously, this includes all your scrapbooking material needs, and rates start at $1,895. This is a national company, and an overpriced one at that (IMHO).
    

Like I said, this isn't a complete list, and I'm sure there are others out there - but honestly, after I found such a great deal from YourPhotoBooths.com, I didn't feel the need to keep looking. =) Suffice to say, we are going with YourPhotoBooths.com, and we're hoping for the best!

UPDATE (3/27/09) - YourPhotoBooths.com could print quality prints in 27 seconds, but has since upgraded their system to provide high quality prints in 8 seconds! This is great improvement, and something to think about when finding a photo booth vendor!

Good luck to everyone - and let me know if you have any questions! If you want to add your photo booth to the list, leave a comment, and I will!

Chris and I have been dating for almost 3 years now and couldn't be happier together!  We met in high school but didn't start dating until after we graduated.  Our relationship is long distance so there is a lot of traveling back and forth to see each other, but we love seeing the world!  We are looking forward to finally see each other every day when we get married.  We appreciate every moment we have together!

Alissa is a senior at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse majoring in marketing.  She's hoping to find a job next summer in a field with a lot of creativity.  For the school year she lives in La Crosse, Wisconsin.

Chris is an electrician in the United States Air Force.  He is currently deployed in the Middle East and will be back in to Alaska in January (where he is currently stationed).

Chris gets to change his base right after we get married.  We will find out where that is in February.  We are looking forward to starting our new lives together!

We are having our wedding next June and due to the fact that I am a super planner I've pretty much got everything together.

Enjoy our site!

Our Wedding Stuff

the bridesmaid bouquet look i want!

the inspiration for my bouquet

Bridesmaids

These are all of the different bridesmaid dresses that they are wearing for my wedding.  Each girl got to pick her own dress and the color of it will be the dress in the top left corner.

Venue

Scenic View Country Club

Decor

The Ring

My engagement ring                                                With the matching wedding bands

We first met online. Andrew had seen my picture on MySpace and instantly felt like he had to meet me so he struck up a conversation and we right away had a good connection. He was living in Las Vegas, NV at the time and I in Apple Valley, CA and he drove straight from work to go on our first date on July 14, 2006. We went out for drinks, played a couple games of pool, then I took him out to get a better look of my town. We ended up hiking up a hill at 1a.m. and it was while holding hands on that rocky stroll that I got the feeling he was going to be/have a major roll in my life. After our walk we talked till the sun came up and both realized we were "it" for each other. In that one night we each found our soul mate and have been planning on spending the rest of our lives with each other ever since. It was actually really cute because he was wanted to know everything from where I went to preschool to how many kids I wanted and what names I liked. Now that I look back on it, I think he wanted us to get married that next day! In October of 2006 Andrew moved back to California to be closer to me and we could work on getting a place together, plus the 6hr round trip drive from Vegas 2 or 3 times a week was a killer in gas and despite him telling me I'm worth it, I worried about him doing all that driving.

(It wasn't until recently in a random conversation that we realized we had been crossing paths several times in the three years prior to us meeting online. Including a couple of times where we shared a friendly smile while he was working in different casino's in Vegas. Just goes to show that a casual glance to a stranger across the room could lead to something great and it's also great that we finally pin pointed where we'd seen each other before being formally introduced.)

Since we are already married, we will be having what is called a "Convalidation" in the Catholic Church. We will be receiving the Sacrament of Matrimony. It is the Priest/Officiant's final decision whether or not we will have a mass, so we don't know that part yet. We will be incorporating our Filipino heritage by incorporating members of our bridal party to include Principal Sponsors and Secondary Sponsors who will assist with cultural traditions of the candle, cord & veil and also and handfasting (tying of the hands) for DH's Irish heritage. (We will also incorporate my German heritage but at the reception)

Ceremony Location: St. Viator Church, Las Vegas NV

Filipino Traditions: Cord & Veil, Candle, Coins

Exerpt from www.weddingsatwork.com: "Candle sponsors light two candles, which the bride and groom use to light a single candle to symbolize the joining of the two families and to invoke the light of Christ in their married life. Veil sponsors place a white veil over the bride's head and the groom's shoulders, a symbol of two people clothed as one. Cord sponsors drape the yugal (a decorative silk cord) in a figure-eight shape--to symbolize everlasting fidelity--over the shoulders of the bride and groom. The groom gives the bride>13 coins,blessed by the priest, as a sign of his dedication to his wife's well-being and the welfare of their future children"

Courtesy of Misha Media (www.mishamedia.com):

Irish tradition of handfasting:

Exerpt from www.littleshamrocks.com: "In handfasting, the wrists of the couple are bound together with a ribbon or cord. Each party holds the hands of the other, right hand to right hand, left hand to left, their wrists crossed. The ribbon is wound around the wrists, over the top of one and under and around the other, creating the infinity symbol. It is said that this practice is the origin of the term ‘tying the knot ’.The vows were spoken and the celebration commenced."

Decor:

Pending! I really would like Pomanders hanging from the pews but I will have to see if it fits our budget. I was originally thinking of later transferring them to the reception site for table centerpieces to justify the cost. I don't have a consultation until the 17th of December so we'll go from there.

Music:

I don't know yet!!!