Get Your Invitation Checked

Alright – so here’s the deal.  I got my invitations, and they are gorgeous! Thanks to the lovely ladies at Chandelier Blanc they are exactly what I wanted.

I was VERY excited to mail these puppies – I purchased Will & Kate “Royal Wedding Day” stamps, had my little invitation station all set up and so, I addressed those bad boys like it was nobody’s business.

We mailed invites all across Canada, some to the USA and Ireland.

I went to the post office, and was worried about the weight of the envelopes, so I  handed my envelope to the Canada Post lady at the desk who said “your envelopes are fine, no need to pay extra postage”

Great! So I mailed them all off.  All but 1.

The last envelope was for James’ parents, who we were seeing that weekend and figured I would give it to them in person.  I forgot the invite at home and ended up going back to the post office monday morning.

Here is where the drama begins:

Me: “I need 1 Canadian stamp for this envelope”

Canada Post lady (same as before): “Ok, that’ll be $1.03″

Me: “No, it’s for Canada, not the USA”

CP Lady: “Yes, I understand but it’s oversized so you have to pay for extra postage”

my heart drops

Me: “Are you serious? I was here last week with some 50 invites and posted them ALL with regular stamps – you said they were ok and I didn’t need extra postage”

CP Lady: “I saw the envelopes? They were THIS size? (pointing to my envelope)
I would not have let you mailed them with regular postage… look (pulls out measure thing) it’s just over enough to be oversized. I would have never told you they were ok. I dont’ think I saw them”

Me: “Uh, yea you did. I was concerned about the weight – not the size – and you took one from my hand, put it on the weight machine, and weighed it. THEN you said it was ok.”

CP Lady: “I wouldn’t have said that”

Me: “well you did. So now what?”

CP Lady: “Your invites will be returned to sender, and you’ll have to mail them again”

At this point, there is absolutely nothing I could do except for swear a bit.  The invites are in the mail gods hands for now… but something so powerful was boiling inside of me I could have slapped the lady at Canada Post – but instead I just left and essentially started to tear up on the street.

I was loosing it. (that’s the understatement of the year).

I started emailing and Facebook messaging a handful of people asking them if they received their mail. FINALLY – James’ sister in-law in NB confirmed… she had received the invite.

1 down… so many more to go.

At least 1 person got it.  As the night progressed, more and more people were telling me they had received their invites.

What a relief!

So it seems – the eager Canada Post Lady (and might I add, is a 20 year old Shoppers Drug Mart Canada Post clerk) stressed me out for almost no reason.

Don’t people understand that brides are already dealing with so much to begin with…. proving a point that your a B*&^% doesn’t make my life easier.

Moral of the story: If you’re sending a mass amount of anything – go to the post office and get things checked, twice!

4 Months to Go!

It’s been a few days since I’ve updated my blog.  We’re are still in this “non-eventful” stage of planning.  A few things have come up, but nothing notable for the blog. Once again, my friend/planner, Maddy K has helped me with questions and concerns I’ve had along the way.

It’s really crazy to think that the wedding is in 4 months. 4! 

This week we finalized our registry.  We had only really planned to registering at 1 shop, but we ended up doing 2 to get a little more variety.  We chose the national retailers since so many of our guests are from out-of-town it just made the most sense.  The invitations are also being finalized this week and the boys are going to look at their attire options soon (I hope!)

There is still so much to do but it all seems to be very manageable for the moment.  Certainly I have my moments and make phone calls here and there…. but overall it’s under control!

So maybe there was a bit more to talk about this time around…..

Thanks for reading!

-V

Honeymoon, Check! (almost)

Well one of the most important things of the wedding is planned. Our honeymoon!!!

We are going to Hawaii.  Hawaii is a special place for both of us as we’ve always wanted to go for as long as we can remember.  Back when we first met, we both talked about how we dreamed of going to Hawaii one day, and that is a destination that we’ve always wanted to travel to even before we knew each other.  When we were thinking of a honeymoon location a few places came to mind, Mexico, Bahamas even Croatia  - but none of these places were special to us in any way.
It wasn’t until James said “too bad we don’t have enough time to go to Hawaii” that it clicked that WE DO HAVE enough time and we should go there!

We are going to Hawaii for 12 days.  75% of the time will be spent in Maui the other 25% will be spent in Honolulu at Waikiki beach!

We are both very athletic so surfing, biking, hiking and swimming will be a large part of our honeymoon!  We’ve booked our flights (first class!!!) and the Maui hotel.  The Honolulu hotel we are still working on but I’m not as worried as I was with our Maui hotel

So that’s it.  No Seychelles island for us like Wills and Kate -but Hawaii is our version of it!

 

Image 1 from: http://www.luxurylink.com/fivestar/hawaii/photos/
Image 2 from: http://www.hawaiireporter.com/council-on-revenues-hawaiis-economic-growth-expected-to-slow/123

Holy 5 Months Away from the Wedding!

So I’m watching some wedding show marathon on TV today and I’m getting inspired/learning what NOT to do…. and then it hits me.  This wedding is 5 months away!
I’m freaking out a little.
There are truly 2 busy periods of planning a wedding – when you first get engaged and finalize things like reception venues, photographers, DJs, planners… you know, all that REALLY important stuff.
The second really busy period is a month or 2 before the wedding.  That’s when you really finalize all the little details like the menu, the decor, the cake.

I feel anxious just thinking about that 2nd period.

Why?

I think it has to do with the fact that I’m running a half marathon a month before, or that I feel like there is just so much TO DO at the last minute it might be really overwhelming. :/

Anyways that’s it for today – just worrying about something I can’t control! LOL! Great!

Until next time,

V

Nothing to Worry About

If you know me, I like things organized and like to plan and complete ahead of time.  I don’t know why I’m like this as no one if my family is really like this (well maybe my mom a bit – and now that I think of it… my youngest sister is sorta the same).  Anyways, I don’t like to leave things until the last-minute (in other words finalizing something a month in advance for the wedding shakes me to my core).

So you can imagine the internal anxiety I started to get when my venue told me the restaurant would be receiving a massive makeover this summer – and that they are beginning renovations at the end of june – and that it will take around 6 weeks.  Lets be honest here…. when in the history of the world have renovations ended on time? Never.  So I figured that I might not see the place until mid to late September (1 month before the weeding). Great.

Naturally – I started loosing it.

Friends and family couldn’t really answer my questions or give me the right advice as no one has really dealt with this kind of “monkey wrench in the plans” before.

So…… I emailed Maddy & Ziena – my faithful planners/counsellors/life coaches/friends.

I told them exactly what was going on and asked things like – do I choose decor now or later? If I choose the bouquet’s now and the decor of the new restaurant doesn’t go – is that a big deal?

Here is what she responded with (I LOVE HER!)

Ok September is not considered last min…. last week of october is considered last min… so you shouldn’t have any sleepless nights about this. Flowers are very simple… and takes a day to finalize and decide! PLUS florists don’t get booked to the level of saying we can’t have you…. so really you have nothing to worry about.

Ideally the concept of bouquets and flowers should match the overall look… so I wouldn’t do bouquets and leave centrepieces for later… not good.

So once the resto is completed, we’ll go see it… and then we’ll work on flowers!!!

You see! Nothing to worry about.

I know this may seem little to some of you reading it – but there is a lot involved in a wedding and only a person like an experienced planner can help you through your “stress-out moments.”

So thank you Maddy and Zeina, I would not be able to survive this without you!

Until next time!

-V

Image from http://sdweddinginsider.com/blog/?p=552

Wedding Checklist

So back to the whole Wedding Binder, as I told you before, the beginning of my binder has a giant check-list.  This bad boy starts at the 18 months mark (did I mention to you that I’m planning my wedding in less than 11 months).

So today it’s time to look over the check list and see what may or may not be seen as a “red flag”

Here we go:

• 6–9 Months Before
  • Decide on your menu.
  • Reserve the musicians and soloist for your ceremony.
  • Reserve your limousine service.
  • Order your invitations and any other stationery.
  • Order wedding favours for your guests.
  • Choose outfits for mother of the bride and mother of the groom.
  • Choose your wedding rings. (We just have to get James’ ring size and then we can finalize this one!)
  • Reserve your florist

Ok so I’ve only crossed off 1 item.  Concerning? No, not yet anyways.  All these items can be dealt with in the next couple months, I’m really  not worried, nor am I calling on Jayne Dayus Hinch. 

So you might think – oh Val, you’re so behind……. you only have 1 thing checked off! Well here is what I have accomplished on the list prior to the 6-9 month mark

• Determine potential dates and times for your wedding.
• Decide on the size, formality and setting of your wedding.
• Create a wedding and engagement budget.
• Reserve the locations for your wedding and reception.
• Meet with and book your wedding officiant or clergy.
• Choose your wedding party and confirm the participants.
• Draw up an initial guest list.
• Book your photographer and videographer.
• Book your live entertainment or DJ.
• Order your wedding cake.
• Reserve any rental items from the rental company.
• Register your gift choices at your favourite stores.
• Research accommodation for out-of-town guests.
• Plan your honeymoon.
• Meet with hairdresser and book appointments

Not too bad now for only 4 months of planning!

Image from: http://www.wedplannerpro.com/

Best Magazine Ever

There are actually 2 magazines that are the “best magazines ever” and I’ll go in more depth as to which ones they are and why they are so amazing.

The first one on the list is “Real Simples Weddings” - a practical and realistic magazine that goes through every major aspect of your wedding and it also answers some common questions.  It’s like a meeting with the wedding planner before you actually sit down with them.  Things like which flowers are in season, writing wedding vows, ideas on reception decor or things to consider…  it’s all there!

The second fabulous magazine is home grown – WedLuxe!   WedLuxe is a gorgeous publication – cover to cover it just doesn’t disappoint. It’s inspirational and luxurious and a great magazine for all brides to snatch up.  Trust me the real-wedding features from this magazine will surely help you finalize the exact look of your wedding!  I’ve already circled and highlighted many ideas from this magazine!

Until next time!