We did it!

We did it! We got married! The weather fully cooperated (the last time it rained was Tuesday, May 25). It was a gorgeous (and humid) day. I was told the birds were chirping during the ceremony (I remember about the first ten seconds of the music while I was walking down the aisle, everything else was silent).

We had an awesome photographer (Nicole) and videographer (Scott) from XSiGHT USA (I work with them both). Here is the video trailer.

Tamee & Ben's Wedding from Scott Rodier on Vimeo.

41 Days To Go!

Things to do for the wedding (41 days away):
-Get remaining responses for attendance (yes, no, still figuring out)
-Print, trim, assemble programs that double as fans
-Sew fabric squares for reception tables
-Make bridesmaids' gifts
-Figure out seating
-Print, trim, assemble escort cards
-Take engagement photos
-Get photographic guestbook made
-Restring grandmother's pearls to not hang down to boobs
-Gather information about Osawatomie and Paola for out of town guests

Recipes

I included a blank recipe card with all the invitations. At first, Ben thought this was a silly idea...but I stood my ground and boy-oh-boy am I glad I did! So far I've received recipes for:

Green Chile Enchiladas
Strawberry Puff Pankcake
Fire & Ice Salad
Baked Lasagna
Beer Batter Bread
Balsamic Vinaigrette
Oreo Balls
Sweet Corn Cake
Smothered Burrito
Chex Mix
Chocolate Insanity
Chicken Chili
Chicken Enchiladas
Barbecued Meatballs
No Bake Cookies
Oven French Toast w/Orange Apple Syrup
Fairholme Granola

Ceremony Site

Below is a photograph taken at 5pm on May 30, 2009 of our ceremony location. Everyone should be in the shade for the ceremony.

This is from the tree looking back at the house. The picnic bench and clothes line will be gone for the ceremony :)

The Tuxes

Ben and I went to Men's Wearhouse this afternoon. We found a vest that is virtually identical to my dress (I have a small swatch of my fabric). This is what Ben will be wearing.
Here is what Dilon and Matt (the groomsmen) will be wearing.

Not sure what my dad will be wearing yet, here are the possibilities.

RSVP Mad Libs

I put a Mad Lib on the back of our RSVP cards. For those who don't know a mad lib is (according to Wiki) : a phrasal template word game where one player prompts another for a list of words to substitute for blanks in a story; these word substitutions have a humorous effect when the resulting story is then read aloud.

I will post the best responses as they come in. The italic words are those that the guests have written in.

Don't forget to wear clean underware before you drink and pee with the wind after the Olympics. We wish you 4 years of happiness and girthy hotdogs.

Rehersal / Welcome BBQ

Because so many people are coming from out of town (all of Tamee's guests, Ben's family and Tamee & Ben's friends from Hallmark), we decided to have a Welcome BBQ instead of a traditional rehearsal dinner. This also serves a dual purpose of spending a little extra time with friends and family we haven't seen in AGES (if ever).

I found this dress at Forever 21. It's supposed to have straps (there are loops for them), but they weren't with the dress, so I'll have to add this later. I also want to replace the flowers on the belt with pink flowers. I may also put a pink flower on each of my flip flops.

Do you notice how focused Koru is checking out my outfit?

Mother-Son Dance

Here are some potential mother-son songs.

Ben called his mom, Jeannie, up to his room when he was around 11 or 12 to listen to this song. He told her this song was for her.















Jeannie used to sing these last two songs to Ben every night.

First Dance, Trois

Is it sad I don't mind looking up music on a Friday night?

This next song is from the movie Juno.

First Dance, Part Deux

I have two artists I am in love with, Brooke Fraser (see below) and Jason Mraz. Jason's song's are upbeat and sweet. He is a master in writing lyrics.

First Dance

Ben and I haven't decided on a first dance song. I'll be posting a few music videos over the next couple of days.

I discovered Brooke Fraser while I was studying abroad in New Zealand in 2004. This song is off of her first album, and I always thought it would be a good first-dance song. I can't wait for album number three!

Father-Daughter Dance

Good Riddence!

My invitations were designed, printed, trimmed and assembled by me. It was the only way to go. I got exactly the design I wanted, with the information I wanted, for a very affordable price. However, I am glad 123 of 142 are gone and in the mail! I have to include a separate piece of information for the family and friends that are staying in a cabin and lodge with my parents, which I haven't printed yet. But I will be happy to never see them again.

Invitations

The invitations are done! I did everything myself, however I bought the envelopes and the pink pockets. I made the envelope liners as well...I found scrapbooking paper I loved, created a template, trimmed them all out and glued them in. The left is the official invite. The slips on the right have directions, travel info, hotels, RSVP, and additional info. And anyone coming from out-of-town will get a Welcome to Kansas slip that tells them about the BBQ the night before the wedding.

The envelope!

Koru is a good helper.Ok Koru, your tail is not part of the invitation, altho some people may get a hair or two in theirs :)The pocket!Sneak peek!

Wedding Rings

I found an awesome ring designer on Etsy.com. Ben's ring will have my fingerprint on the inside, and my ring will have his.

Reception Venue

We had a mini crisis while we were in Kansas for Christmas. About a week or two before we went back to Kansas, we found out our venue hit a snag in the renovation process and wouldn't be ready for our wedding. There are very few places in the area that are big enough and clean enough to house all our guests. I was beginning to panic around December 3oth, because we had 5 months to book a place. I figured everywhere would be snatched up already. But luck was on our side, we found the Grand Loft in Osawatomie that was booked Friday and Saturday before the wedding, but available on Sunday! We ended up booking the place. Should the weather be terrible the day of, they have a chapel downstairs we can use!

There are two rooms, the main room, pictured here can seat 170 guests + bridal party (and their dates). The second room is on the other side of the bar and can hold another 48.

Program

For those who don't know, Kansas can be very hot and humid in the summer. To combat this, I decided to make our programs double as fans. The leafs will be held together with a hole punched in the bottom and a pink ribbon tied thru.

Bridesmaids

I took more time selecting the bridesmaids' dresses than I did my own! I originally wanted pink dresses, but I felt sooo bad asking Lisa, Leslie, and Amanda to buy a pink dress that they'd probly never wear again. Around Xmas time, Ben and I decided we would do black, with some sort of pink accent. Changing the dresses to black opened up a bazzillion more options. In the end I selected a strapless cotten sateen dress (which has hidden pockets)!! I am somewhat tempted to get one for myself. We will add a pink sash to each dress.

Tamee's Shoes

When I started looking for shoes to wear, I knew I didn't want plain white shoes. As a photographer, colored shoes are so much more fun. Here are a couple of potential shoes.

Because the ceremony is on grass, I thought these shoes would be great.
I found these beauties, but I could not find them in my size. I can't tell you how bummed I was.
Then I found these sexy things. I loved that the heal wasn't small, so I wouldn't sink into the grass. I purchased these, tried them on and loved them. These are what I will be wearing pre-ceremony and ceremony.
I figure my feet will be tired of standing in heels all day, so I will switch shoes for the ceremony. I wear Converse all the time, so I could wear these after the wedding.
I am a little worried about being hot from dancing my wedding booty off in the Converse, so I may do these instead.
I also think these would be pretty hot!