Playing Hooky!

Ok well, I had to get in to Bella Donna Bridal in Sacramento this week. I have so many other commitments this week and this weekend, that I had to go today. Bella Donna Bridal is the the only store near me that sells the beautiful Melissa Sweet gowns that I have been loving every time I look in a bridal magazine. I love her styles and the fabrics that she uses, but I so wish they weren't so expensive. Well, enough rambling and on to the pics....

The Liliana...

This pic doesn't do the train justice. It is gorgeous and very full. It is perhaps a bit too full for me and our wedding venue.


And the Jillian....

This one was surprisingly light! I was concerned about the popularity of this dress (a la the last dress in my previous post) and I was assured that haven't sold a single one.
Oh and of course it is the most expensive dress I have ever tried on in my life!

More dress fun-ness!

While I was in Miami, I contemplated another Nicole Miller dress. Unfortunately, the sample was a size 12. Now a size 12 in bridal gear, is usually equivalent to a size 8 in lets say Gap clothes (future brides: just don't pay attention to the size), however, at Nicole Miller a 12 is a 12. Needless to say, the dress literally fell off me.


Now I am not complaining, it is just that it is hard buying a $2k+ dress with only your imagination to help. That is the beauty of Nicole Miller. They are a boutique, so they can do what other bridal shops can't. My lovely saleswoman, called up the other 8 or so stores in the US and found a sample dress closer to my size. She had them overnight it to my house in CA. So, I had a little viewing soiree once it came.
The verdict - where is my waist and hips? And, I would have to cut off a quarter of the skirt (yes I am wearing 4 inch heels). I am so glad I didn't let my imagination run wild and order this dress. So, I shelled out $90 and sent it back. But before I did that, I kept that sucker on as long as I could and played good hostess to my friends and cat.


So in the end, I can say that I am immensely grateful for the customer service at Nicole Miller, but unfortunately this dress is made for a 5'8"+ woman. It is not for me.

Eye Candy!!!

So I found a venue (yes I should say "we", but I really did find it and research it) - more about that in another post. For now, I will chronicle my hunt for a dress.

While I was in Miami, I had to do a bit of shopping with my mom. It was fun, but I definitely had my game face on. Luckily we had no high pressure salespeople. Shocking!

(1) First stop - Nicole Miller

I love this dress, but have decided that I want a little more drama from behind.

(2) Next stop was Coral Gables Bridal where I found this very bridal Pronovias
As pretty as it is, it just isn't what I am looking for.

(3) So, once I was back in CA, I decided to do some shopping on my own at House of Fashion:

OK - I am totally not going to wear this. This is a great example of NOT listening to what others recommend and to not necessarily buy what you can pull off.

Here are two others that I like from this store:

This one fits me on my bottom half, but NOT on the top. So it looks pretty awkward. Although the pics don't demonstrate it well, I do have curves in this dress. I love the drama from behind!

I would replace this with one of my Grams' brooches.

Yes there are cups in there

This one I really liked. Unfortunately, my overworked saleslady didn't take good pictures. As it turns out, it is a really popular dress. So it is no longer an option. For the amount of money, I don't want to wear what so many other brides are wearing. Call me crazy, but I want to have a little bit of originality in my garb.

More soon, as I have appointments set for this weekend!

Planning is HARD yo!

As much as I told myself that I wouldn't lose myself in wedding planning, I have! Part of the problem is that we (or should I say I) want to get married in March next year. Normally, this would be no big deal - you have 14 months and it is in the off season. But nooooo, in Miami, it is high season. See, February and March are the cooler months and have the least probability of rain. The other brides caught on to that - damn! Anyway, all the cool, not crazy expensive places are starting to get booked. So I need to get on it and find a place asap.

I have 8 days to find a venue. While I am in crazy ass MIA, I decided that I might as well interview photographers, caterers, and cake bakers since I won't be able to come back until June. So in the meantime, I am doing the legwork to find good affordable vendors, getting preliminary proposals, and scheduling meetings. Yikes!

Places up for consideration:
The Deering Estate- a gorgeous historical park that was the home of one of Miami's early prominent businessmen. It is located on the Palmetto Bay and has beautiful tropical hardwood hammocks. The place couldn't be more perfect, except that we could only afford to invite 75 people. Beyond that and the price jumps up 3 fold.


The Ancient Spanish Monastery - A true Spanish Monastery built in Segovia in the 1100's, it was brought to Miami brick by brick and rebuilt. William Randolf Hearst commissioned it in the 1920's. It is beautiful and has lovely gardens and is a little out of our price range.

Cauley Square- A funky collective of historic homes, now serving as a artisan village, surrounds a tropical hardwood hammock. It is a bit of a drive and maybe a tad too rustic.

The Miami Beach Botanical Garden - What can I say it is a garden that we can afford (Fairchild is sooo out of our budget). It isn't as lush as I would like and the reception room is pretty bland. But its location is great for our out of town guests - they will be happy to stay on the beach.

Jungle Island - A pretty new location that was the old Miami tourist attraction Parrot Jungle. It is now located on its very own island on the way to South Beach. This place is all inclusive, and does the catering for you. It is all new and shiny pretty and very Miami-ish, but is a theme park at the end of the day. They have a damn LIGER - yep as well as crocs, monkeys, and their ubiquitous parrots. It is shockingly in our budget, but the Fiance isn't up for the theme park business.

So I am headed to Miami soon enough and will check out all these places. Hopefully the one I decide on will be free for the dates we are interested in.

Happier times!

That last post was a real downer. I haven't rehashed the whole "how we met" thing, which is much more pleasant of a post. So here it goes... We were both undergraduate students taking our first Ecology course. We had lab together and became part of the same lab group. I totally thought he was cute and that one of the other lab group members was jonsing for him too. I put the flirt on pretty unabashedly. I even stooped as low as acting stupid for some tutoring time from him. Well that caused him to not take me too seriously as a scholar. Anyway, thinking I was at least a fun kind of girl, we became fast friends. He eventually took me seriously (especially when I kicked a$$ in that class), but as it turned out, he was in a relationship (albeit unhappy) with someone. I was pretty devastated, but happy to have a friend at least. He eventually moved out of that relationship and a few months later he asked me out. I even had to ask him if he meant as friends. Too funny - I was so smitten, but in friend mode for so long. Our first date was magical. It was nothing special in terms of what we did - bar hopping and walking around Downtown Ft. Lauderdale. But there was some serious sparks flying! Comparing that date with all the dates I have ever had in my life - I should have known that he was THE one right then and there. Flash forward 10 years, and here we are.

Next up... the hell of finding a ceremony and reception site that is in our budget and makes the fiance happy.

With joy, also comes sorrow

So, this next post was earmarked to be how my fiancé and I met. Well, my stream of consciousness's wasn't having that. Instead, as I was thinking happy thoughts while envisioning my family celebrating with my fiancé and I, I remembered all the people who will be missing it. And so the sorrow kicked in... and that's where I am. Many of my loved ones have passed away. All of my grandparents, my Aunt, and my great Aunt have left this place. I am not over it - not even close. Yeah, I don't handle death too well. I reminisce too much about people, places and things especially related to my family. So, I think of these people often and fondly, and miss them terribly.

How will I honor these wonderful people that have so seriously supported and fostered my development, without losing it on my wedding day? I don't think I have made it through any of my friends' ceremonies, especially where the officiant mentions "people that are no longer with us" without getting misty. I have no idea - I am such a crier! I know my parents won't be much better either.

To be honest, I would rather do away with that line in the ceremony. I don't want to be reminded that they aren't there because I want to be happy - happy for the people we still have with us.

Alternatively, I would like to display framed pictures of my grandparents and great aunt's wedding portraits. Hopefully, I can also get my my hands on a picture of my recently departed Aunt. This, I think I can handle.

Regardless of how we manage this, I am thankful for waterproof mascara. Death sucks!

How it came to be - the proposal...

He worked so hard and everything was against him. He wanted to ask me on a horseback riding trip on the coast, but the weather had been terrible. He wanted to do it a week earlier, but I changed my flight and wasn't in town. He wanted to ask my parents in person, but again, I changed my flight and WAS around. In the end, it was perfect and it was us...

He first asked for my parents' blessing over the phone. He tried to get my father on the phone for 5 straight days. When he finally got in touch with them, they were ecstatic! With their blessing, he went ahead with his plan. Instead of horseback riding, though, he surprised me by making my favorite breakfast - French Toast - even though he doesn't cook. I woke up to find a beautiful spread on our dining room table: tulips, fresh fruit, coffee, juice, etc... I started to eat a strawberry, when he flew into the dining room, came down on his knee, and said, "before you eat, will you marry me?". I was in shock, but managed to say yes or of course or something in the affirmative. I was so surprised! He then took me out for Tapas and wine and to then to see an African dance performance. It was all too perfect and lovely. I am a lucky woman!