Wedding night hotel: At the end of the evening, we were driven by the best man (my husband's new brother-in-law) to the Hyatt in Minneapolis. It was hard trying not to fall asleep in the car! Our friends had rented our Amorous room for us for two days, which was awesome, because we were actually able to enjoy the second day in such a fancy room! They brought us chocolate and champagne, which was really nice! They had a nice treat basket waiting for us, and it was nice being able to order breakfast whenever. I think it was great to have a small vacation before the actual honeymoon, and I wouldn't consider it the start of our honeymoon YET because my mother stopped by on Sunday to pick up my dress so that it could be dry cleaned.

It’s strange to think that it would be hard to find a photographer, but they book up fast! After careful research, I found that the average was about $1500 for a photographer, which was about what we paid. The best thing was being able to have two professional photographers on site, something that I never considered before. There were extra costs because we had several locations that we wanted to be photographed. What we liked was how comfortable we felt being posed. We also found it very, very hard not to smile! Most of our pictures we’re grinning! Of course we were going to smile, we’re getting married!

This idea came to us from some friends we met in the Peace Corps. They had wedding bands made from wood. We decided to get Touch Wood rings because 1) we love nature, 2) we are skeptical about the diamond industry, and 3) the wood ring is simple and beautiful and elegant. We exchanged about a dozen emails with Dave (the maker of the rings), discussing the type of wood we wanted and what each ring should look like. In the end we choose a dark wood walnut band for him, and a lighter honey walnut band for me. I love the feel of the ring on my hand, how it looks, and what it means.

This store was made for party favors! We were able to buy everything from a very pretty cake display, to confetti, to tiny little bottles that hold the bubble soap (for when we left the church). We also got place cards, which I thought was rather helpful! I don’t think that people expect wedding favors, or small souvenirs, but I liked that we were able to give each guest a token and memory of our special day. We chose these small chocolate boxes. Tiny, but cute (and practical, because they could eat it).I would say to check it out, and know that you can always add your own personal touch to anything.

There’s this whole subculture set up around DIY weddings, that I felt I should spend an entire weekend gluing ribbons and beads on cards with my maid of honor. We spent about an hour in Michaels, at least an hour, looking at all the different invitations. In the end, we picked some very nice Martha Stewart kits (pink for the bachelorette party, green for the save the date, and then blue for the wedding). They have many kits to choose from, and we were lucky and could get some stuff on clearance. It took lots of time printing them up, making sure they went in the right envelopes, but it was fun and I think it’s totally part of the process.

When my mother-in-law suggested the Blaisdell Manor as the site of our reception, I jumped at the opportunity! I had always pictured my wedding as a glamorous evening with chairs with big bows on the back and tiny twinkling lights overhead. As far as price, the rental of any of the rooms (i.e.: the ballroom) is small, and the overall price is determined by what you add on to the evening. We liked that we were able to bring in our own cake! Secret Wal-Mart cake!

I was shocked when I found out how much wedding cakes were! Seeing that I needed to feed lots of people, I momentarily considered just baking the cakes myself. In the end, my mother told me that Wal-Mart made a delicious cake for a party at her work. Wal-Mart makes those general sweet cakes, so I went ahead and ordered that. I think I lucked out because the baker who took care of making the butter rosettes must be really talented, because she made the top layer look like a full bouquet! There were dozens of small roses, and I was so touched by what a good job they did! They provided the stand, too, in the cost. And if anyone asks who made your cake, you can say, “Oh, someone local.”

This was the first thing I did! I shopped around at a few stores, but Weddings on First was by far the nicest and most knowledgable staff. They understood that I had a firm budget, and went out of their way to make sure I found a dress that I loved! I wanted something simple, long, chiffon, and with delicate beaded work at the top. The salesgirl had no hesitancy in pulling a few bridesmaid dresses out along with wedding dresses for me to try (“We can always order them in white”). I liked that she didn’t try to pressure me into trying on a dress that I couldn’t afford (or worse, letting me try on a dress, fall in love, and then tell me it’s $900! It’s happened to me at other stores!)

My mom and sister loved the ambiance so much, my sister claims this is where she’ll get her next dress!

I was scared when my best friend told me that she planned a bachelorette party, but was thrilled when I found out that she had rented out the back room at Paint Your Plate for me, my mother and sister, and my friends. I had to wear a feather crown and the girls provided the champagne, and I thought that it was super cute that people made “plates of good fortune” for my life as a wife! It was creative, and I didn’t have to drink out of a strange looking straw!

My husband is a huge Twins fan, so his buddies from work scored some ticket to the Yankees game. He usually settles for sitting up in the bleacher seats, so I think he was pretty thrilled sitting so close and knowing that Liriano would hear his heckling. His best friend bought him a jersey, a cap, and they filled him up on beer and peanuts. Afterwards they brought him to the bar across the street and watched highlights and fed him chicken wings. Baseball, beer, and chicken wings! He was happy, and I was sooo happy that they didn’t drag him to a stripclub!

I had bought the dress a year before the wedding, and assume it fit at the time. A month before the day, my mother and mother-in-law insisted that I try on the dress for them. I guess in all the stress of planning and starting a new job, I had lost some weight. The dress sort of hung in the front. We asked around and we were told about The DressMaker. They were really nice about fitting us in, considering the short time span. The dress, they said, was easy to fix. I have to say that when I saw the types of dresses they were making, I wish I would have gotten a custom made dress rather than my generic dress! I was beautiful nonetheless!