Venue Visit

This weekend, Mr. Lox and I went to the B&B where we’ll be getting married for a mini weekend getaway. We drove up Friday after work, went to a beer dinner Friday night then stayed over and went to a wine dinner Saturday night. Now that we’re at home, I want to show you all of our awesome pictures and tell you all about it!

WARNING: Very long and picture heavy post ahead!

First, we checked in and saw our room. I no longer have any doubts about referring our guests to stay here!

OMG, this room was so amazing.

Mr. Lox and I both agreed, this was the most comfortable bed we've ever had at a B&B!

Then, the food. I have pictures of (most of) what we ate at the beer dinner. I gave up at the wine dinner. But I’m glad we went because we learned a few things about what we want to do and what we don’t want to do. These dinners are all that we get in the way of tastings. So we were there to learn about their cooking style and get ideas of what we might like and not like at our wedding.

The beer dinner was a seated meal which was served to us in five courses.

Grilled shrimp skewers with banana-dijon dipping sauce

Broccoli and Sharp Cheddar Bisque

Grilled Chicken Breasts on Sesame Noodle Salad

This is where we learned something critical. We will not be having any chicken dishes at our wedding. While all the food was great so far, the chicken was drier than we would like, and we’re not feeding that to our guests. Good lesson from a great meal! This is also where I forgot to take a picture of the Open Faced Bahn Mi (BBQ Pork Belly on Baguette Slices Topped with Shredded Daikon, Carrots, and Cucumbers). It was delicious but I was so full at this point that I could only eat some of the pork. Mr. Lox polished off what I left behind though. I was NOT however, too full to eat this:

"Pot" Brownie with Porter Caramel Sauce (Get it? Pot? Nice.)

We went to bed stuffed and happy that night.

Mr. Lox and me, stuffed and happy after the beer dinner!

The last time I went to our venue, I didn’t have my camera with me. I was not about to get caught like that again. After breakfast on Saturday morning (with delicious bacon!), I dragged Mr. Lox around the grounds to take pictures with me. He’s really  quite patient. 😉

This is the ceremony space from the back gate where I would enter. Picture chairs and an aisle leading to the gazebo.

This is the same space, just a little closer shot of the gazebo. Also see that porch to the left? That's where the DJ will be.

And yes, I am trying to figure out how to spiffy up that gazebo so it is a prettier backdrop for our ceremony. Also, Mr. Lox has spontaneously decided that he *needs* a flower petal aisle. Regardless of cost. He actually asks for so very little that we will be having a flower petal aisle, no questions asked. Secretly, I’m thrilled of course. Now it doesn’t matter that our florist costs will be higher… it’s his request! Sneaky me… 😉 Now, on the the pictures! The next set is the front of the main mansion and the porch where our cocktail hour is going to be.

The main mansion. I love the detail along the porch.Mansion from the front

This is where our cocktail hour will be. Obviously it will be laid out differently, but the bar will be at the far end where the "Cocktails" sign is.

 After cocktail hour, the guests will be moved around to the back where the pavilion is. And this is where the remainder of our reception will take place.

The pavilion from the outside.

The inside of the pavilion

It was still set up from the beer dinner the night before. The white linens and chairs are included in our package with the inn. Also included, but not shown, is a colored (or white) overlay… our choice from the colors they have in stock. But we can talk about that another day… like after Mr. Lox and I have decided what the heck we want.

The visit had its highs and lows, but overall I’m more in love with our wedding venue than I ever thought I would be.

And now, it’s time to tell you one of the biggest draws that this venue held for me. The photo opportunities. SeriouslyI loved the spaces on the grounds when we saw them. But what made me lose it were the other places we could get to in under a minute that would make beautiful memories. One of the things I worried about most in our first venue was that our pictures wouldn’t be nice. There were no grounds, and we were in what looked like a bank building. Next to, get this, a bank. But this place, this place was by the water. And…. well just look at the other places we could take pictures.

Pictures by a lighthouse? Yes please!

Pictures on a pier by the water? I'll have a few of those too.

Admittedly, a real photographer can get a more flattering shot of the promenade. Amateur me was tired, sweaty, and watching a horde of gnats to my right. But still, promenade pictures!

Did you scope out picture spots in advance, or did you let your photographers wing it? Were your photographers familiar with your venue, or was it the first time on site for them? What made you fall in love with your venue?

I admit it. I took all pictures in this post. Please be gentle.

Just call me Imelda

I love shoes. I could try to be coy about it, but that’s just not my nature. So there it is. Shoes. I love them.

Oh how I love my closet. If only it were always this neat!

I present to you Exhibit A. This is a picture of my closet right after I moved in with Mr. E last year. Please take a moment to revel with me in the joy of a perfectly appointed closet. I know, this is a little weird. But I love my closet almost as much as shoes.

Right, shoes! Back on topic then. Look at the bottom of the closet underneath all the clothes. Please to be noting the giant stacks of shoe boxes over to the left. Please also direct your attention to the shoes on the floor on the right (and closer to the wall there is a two tiered rack) that are not in boxes. Yes, I love shoes that much. My nickname maybe should have been Ms. Imelda. Oh well, that ship already sailed. Back to the point… this picture was taken about 7 pairs of shoes ago, so imagine 7 more on the left side there. It’s like that.

Naturally, one of the first parts of my wedding ensemble that caught my attention were the shoes! I had some requirements. They had to be fun, with bonus points awarded for sparkles. They had to be super flatty flat flat flats since Mr. Lox and I are the same height and for some reason I am hyper-sensitive about looking taller than him in pictures. (Seriously, only in pictures. I don’t even care the rest of the time. I’m a freak.) And they had to be comfortable because I wanted to wear my super fun possibly sparkly comfy flats all night.

Now enter my personal shopper. Before we go further, don’t hate on me. I’m a plus-sized gal who gets overwhelmed when shopping and usually ends up in tears unless I’m buying shoes. (See, now it all makes sense…) So when I need to shop for, you know, stuff to actually cover the rest of me, I turn to my lovely personal shopper at Nordstrom. (It’s a free service. You just pay for clothes! And no, they are not paying me to write this.) She was helping me pick out the clothes for my engagement pictures when I saw them. The clouds parted and the sun shone down on my perfect sparkly flats. I couldn’t leave them behind.

Oh hello, my lovelies! Click for source.

Just look at their sparkly gold super fun perfection! And flat? Oh yes… the sole is the absolute minimum thickness that a shoe sole can be and there is no hint of heel on these babies. They are perfect. And they are so so very me.

So there ends my tale of how and why I bought my shoes before my dress. Also I had this idea in my head that I had to have the right shoes on to get measured for my dress. Yes, now I know that is ridiculous unless you are doing a special hallow to hem measurement. I can, in fact, be taught.

What was your very first wedding day purchase?

All pictures courtesy of the one and only Miss Lox. Unless otherwise noted.

Paved with good intentions

Let’s get real here. I’ve yapped a little about how I’m going to DIY some details for our big day. And so far, I’ve shown you my flower balls (seriously, could no one come up with a better name?). But that is not the only craft in progress here at Chez Lox. Nor is it the only craft on my list. So today I decided to take inventory of what I intend to do. And for some reason, every time I take inventory of something, it means a spreadsheet. Don’t ask, it’s a sickness. Just wait until we talk about dress shopping…

It looks so sweet and innocent here...

It’s deceptive. That spreadsheet makes it look so sweet and innocent. Harmless even. And yet, for a person who readily admits to being un-crafty, that is an imposing list indeed. In case you can’t see it (or don’t feel like clicking through to) here is my lovely list of projects, in no particular order:

1. Tissue Paper Pomanders
2. Flower Balls
3. Mini Paper Lanterns
4. Large Tissue Poms
5. Program Fans
6. Escort Cards
7. Cake Table Banner
8. Sweetheart Table Decorations
9. Water bottles
10. OOT Bags
11. Children’s Activities
12. Fauxtobooth
13. Fauxtobooth Sign
14. Guestbook Paper
15. Guestbook Sign
16. STD Envelopes
17. Bar Sign
18. Gazebo Decorations
19. Flowers for Mothers

That’s the first time I’ve numbered it like that. Oooof.

Anyway, now you have an inventory of my intentions. Here’s hoping you stick around to see how I make out at the finish line!

What DIY projects did you take on? Did you finish what you set out to do, or are you scrapping some as the big day approaches?

Image courtesy of ‘lil ole me.

Will you remember?

One of the most important things to us in this planning process is making memories that we can relive for a lifetime. Because of that we chose a great photographer (more on that another day) and we’re looking forward to all of the awesome photo spots that our venue now holds. We want to be able to look at these pictures with our children someday and have them see how magical it was for us.

One of the things we thought we didn’t need was video proof of the day. I mean, who ever watches those things right? They get tossed in a cabinet somewhere and forgotten. Right. That’s what we said.

But then I perused a ton of wedding boards where people say it was the best decision they made to hire a videographer. And those who didn’t say it s their biggest regret. And it’s not just one person, it’s TONS of people. So I started to waiver.

Then I see something awesome like this highlight video of Mrs. Dolphin’s wedding and I melt. Of course I would watch that! And I’d share it with people who couldn’t be there! And I could see the moment we got married over and over and over. I would always remember.

Mr. Lox is not thrilled with me right now. Because as badly as I’d like video, it’s really not in the budget. I mean, really it’s not. I tried bringing it up to him and he was definitely not receptive.

So tell me, how do you feel about hiring a videographer? Worth it or unnecessary expense? And if it’s worth it, anyone know of a cheap one in the Baltimore area?

Top This x 2 – Cake Topper Boogaloo

I am just too excited right now! Remember when I talked about our super awesome cake topper? Well today I got a message from the Etsy seller making ours. She included pictures so I can approve the final product before she sends it to me. This thing is absolutely too cute for words! I am bouncing!

This is our very own cake topper! I lurves it! Photo courtesy of Etsy seller Garden4Arts. Click to see her shop.

Look at their adorable little faces! Photo courtesy of Etsy seller Garden4Arts. Click to see her shop.

Monkey butts! Photo courtesy of Etsy seller Garden4Arts. Click to see her shop.

How can you not love that? How, I ask???

Did you ever get excited over a silly wedding detail? Tell me about it and I promise to squee with you. 😉

Music Part 2 – We need professional help

Oh yes, yes we do. Now whether that help comes in the form of a DJ or straightjackets and padded rooms is debatable. But here’s how last night went down.

First of all, I was already at my wit’s end. We had been pricing out string trios and quartets for our ceremony and cocktail hour. They all turned out to be a complete budget buster. But in my determination to take care of this music stuff, I soldiered on. (This is not a problem, world peace is a problem!) And I found a DJ who is on our venue’s preferred list and also costs less for the ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception than any string quartet did for just an hour and a half. So far so good.

So Mr. Lox and I went to meet with the DJ. He was all laid back and cool, and to be quite honest I think he was put off by my obsessive need to plan this. I mean, I arrived with a planning guide from his website and a list of questions. He spent the next 30 minutes trying to get me to calm down. The thing is, I was calm. I just really have a vision of the vibe I want this day to have and I need to make sure I’m going to get it.

Things were going quite well (aside from his face of horror each time I micromanaged another tiny detail) when it happened. We reached a point in the interview where I shared a secret desire for my wedding. I have searched high and low for the lady who gave me this idea, but I’m at a loss. I know it was one of the bloggers from Weddingbee. (I mean, I think. I cannot seem to find any evidence of the blog post that sparked my interest anymore.) Anyhow, I have become absolutely obsessed with having this song in my wedding ceremony.

I have searched high and low for this MP3 and I cannot find it. I was giving up hope. Nevermind the fact that Mr. Lox thought I was slightly daffy for wanting this in the first place and perhaps certifiable for being so fixated on it. Still, he mentioned it to the DJ. And what to my wondering ears should…. ummm… appear? HE HAS IT. Yes, it was exciting enough for all caps. I believe I squealed in the middle of a Starbucks. Loudly.

And so it is that Mr. Lox and I have decided to hire this DJ. And Mr. Lox has gracefully given in to me and has allowed the above song to be the very last song in our prelude, right before the processionals start. This is why I love this man. Muppets.

Did you ever fixate on one tiny detail of your wedding day? Or am I the only highly irrational and fixated bride out there? Commiserate with me!

If only…

If only I didn’t already have (or at least hadn’t already ordered) our perfect cake topper, I would consider ordering from Bunny with a ToolBelt based on this video alone.

Seriously, how much pure awesomeness is that? Too much for me. I just made Mr. Lox stop playing video games long enough to watch this. His favorite part was the frogs croaking.

Still, have you ever seen something that makes you wish you had waited to buy a particular item?

Note: I am still in mad love with our monkeys. I just am powerless to resist a movie with dancing cake topper robots!

DJ Dumb and Dumber

Dearest hive, I cannot even be coy about this. I am sitting at my desk at work (Hi there boss!) looking at a planning sheet from a perspective DJ. We are meeting with him  and it has come to my attention that Mr. Lox and I are woefully unprepared. And that we really have no idea how to hire a DJ.

I’ve nailed down the first dance song, and that’s about it. There are spots here for cake cutting, last dance, dinner music… I am aghast. Somehow, I had no idea I was going to have to pick so much. There is also a question on here about how long after dinner we’d like the cake to be cut. I didn’t know there were options? Can I just ask him what works best?

This is my confused face. Please to be ignoring my cubicle toys in the background.

Picture courtesy of moi.

To boot, the very little ceremony music we have decided on is all stuff he doesn’t have. Can I expect him to get it? I mean, is that kosher? Or is it all Bridezilla to want him to go fetch my songs?

All I can say is that I am apparently DJ-stupid and I am figuring this out far too late. Let’s hope I’m better at faking it with him than I am with all of you!

Did you have a hard time with one of your vendors? Tell me about it, so I can stop feeling like the dumbest bride on earth! 😉

In sickness and in health

We all know the classic traditional wedding vows. We’ve heard them a hundred times over. In case they have slipped our minds, here’s a refresher:

“I, (Name),
Take you, (Name),
To be my (wife/husband);
To have and to hold,
From this day forward,
For better, for worse,
For richer, for poorer,
In sickness and in health,
To love and to cherish,
‘Till death do us part.”

In there, there’s this tiny statement “In sickness and in health”. Couples say it every day, and I have no doubt they mean it. But now I know, 100% that Mr. Lox is willing to hold up his end of this bridal bargain.

This week, I went back to the doctor. Again. I’ve been hinting at being sick, but it’s been worse than I’ve let on, dear hive. This week when I went to my doctor to follow up, yet again, she said something horrible. “It could be leukemia.”

It was like a bomb dropped in the room. And no sooner did I get out of her office than Mr. Lox was on the phone wanting to know what happened at my appointment. So I had to tell him. And boom went the bomb again. We both spent the better part of this week terrified.

But out of terror, here is what I learned. Mr. Lox is truly beside me, in sickness and in health. He spent his week combing the internet for information. He visited medical sites, Wikipedia, and message boards. He found out how much medication would cost, what treatment would be, how my insurance would respond. By the time I got to a hematologist yesterday, Mr. Lox was an expert on leukemia.

The good news is, I don’t have cancer. No one knows what I do have, but it’s not cancer. And the better news is that I know even if it had been cancer, Mr. Lox was going to be by my side no matter what. “In sickness and in health” was not a vow he would take lightly. Even before we have taken our vows, he is committed to me and to us. No matter what.

We are writing our own vows, or at least that’s the plan right now. So the traditional “in sickness and in health” may not be a part of what he pledges to me. But after this week, it may somehow be a part of what I say to him.

Are you writing your own vows or saying something traditional? What do your vows mean to you?

Music Part 1 – Dance with me

So, let’s talk about music. When I started wedding planning, I didn’t really think about this. In the past I’ve gone traditional, and I’ve gone non-existent. But it was never something I thought about a great deal. For some reason this time, it seems more important.

With our first venue, the owner said we could have a jazz band and we were so excited about everything else that we accepted that without thinking. Live music! Fun! That was the extent of our consideration. But after we got home and before I started panicking about the venue, I started to have doubts. Would a jazz band be able to make people dance the night away? Would they play the ceremony too? If not, who would? And what about MC duties… would the band do that too? Or would I have to make other arrangements? And what if they didn’t know our first dance song?

Since the first dance song was the only thing I knew was decided, I fixated and started to panic. Mr. Lox tried to calm me down. He tried to tell me we’d figure it out. But my Type-A self was not comforted. And the thing about the first dance song is that the version was extremely important to me. It had to be one exact song, and I wasn’t letting go.

Now, my obsession with the music is too great to contain in one post. But since I know our first dance song, I can share that here. This is what we (meaning I, from the moment I first heard it years ago) have always wanted.

The words speak to me. It is exactly what I’ve always wanted my future spouse to feel for me, and it’s what I have felt for Mr. Lox for a long time. I truly truly love this song. I cry alone in my car whenever it comes on my iPod! Yes, I’m a sap.

Did you always know what your first dance song would be? Or was it something you two had to figure out together? How did you decide?