Tricking Our Guests
June 1, 2009 
The French Bulldog invitations are off to the printers, YAY! But before we could send them out we had to answer the tricky question of when to start the ceremony and more importantly what to put on the invitations. If you’re reading this thinking, “Um Frenchie, shouldn’t they be the same time?” I envy you for your punctual friends and family.
Papa Frenchie and I are always waiting downstairs for my Mama Frenchie and Sister Frenchie to be ready. I had a friend in high school who we’d tell something started at least an hour before it actually did in hopes of her being on time, and although none of my current friends are that bad I’m selfish and I don’t want people sneaking in, in the middle of the ceremony OR missing it entirely.
There is also the matter of traffic. The majority of our guest will most likely be driving 65 miles from Orange County to Rancho Bernardo, which, according to Google Maps takes a little over an hour. But, that is with no traffic.
The traffic from OC to SD can be hit or miss, you can make it to downtown in no time or it can take you hours. Most the time there is not rhyme or reason for the delay, especially in the summer. We’ve tried to alert our guests on our website and Wedding Map, but not everyone is going to check those sites.
So what is our solution? We lied. Our invitation says that our ceremony will begin @3:30 (just like the website and the map), but we’re really going to begin @4. Annie, the winery’s coordinator, suggested placing a sign at the entrance to the Pavilion that says something like:
Did you lie about the start time of your wedding to ensure all your guest were on time?Flutter? Maybe not.
FH, MOB and I visited the winery on Saturday to meet with our potential florist (which I will tell you about soon). When we were there I thought it would be a good idea to make sure we were allowed to do a toss. Annie (the coordinator) wasn’t sure if confetti would be alright with maintenance but we are allowed to do a toss… and we are most definitely at least allowed to use flower petals. YAY!
So this fluttery goodness may not be in our future…
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but at least our dream of a toss is coming true. YAY! <– I’m just so excited!
Also, since we aren’t having children in the wedding we have found something for Jason’s cousin and my younger cousins to help with… hand out the petal (hopefully fluttery confetti) to the guest as they arrive to the ceremony. I’m going to make paper cones (a future DIY tutorial) to hold the petals and put them in a basket for easy hand out.
Are you incorporating the children in your family in other ways?
Shower Us With Love, People
For awhile I’ve been thinking about when we could have our guest throw stuff at us… I guess toss is a better word. We’re not getting married in a church so we can’t to the classic toss outside the church. Plus, I always wondered how the logistics worked on that one. I guess in the past the happy couple walks down the aisle before everyone else, then hangs out in a room until the guest have emptied the church and then they leave showered with rice (or whatever).
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But now (or back then) do the guests just chill outside and wait for all the family pictures in the church?
An option for us is to have the send off at the end of the evening, with the ever popular Sparklers. I just love those pictures.
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However, I’ve been to too many weddings where most the guests have left before “Sparkler time” and I want as many people there as we can. Also, our venue closes at 9 and we’d (FH and I) like to stay as long as possible and enjoy our party.
With those options out the window I thought, well would it be weird if they tosses stuff at us as we come back down the aisle? I’ve never done it, but I know it’s been done, right? RIGHT!
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Now, I have no idea what they are throwing here, as I cannot read that teeny tiny print in the bottom corner, but I love it! I just love the way wider confetti like this falls, especially when they flutter in the air *swoon*. So far the only ecofriendly confetti I’ve found it much smaller, like this.
Which, I’ll admit looks pretty cool.
So, that isn’t a bad backup 🙂
But, can you help a Birdie out? Do you know where I can get wider ecofriendly confetti?
Are your guest tossing stuff? When and what?
First Dance Song
FH and I have talked on and off about what we want as our first dance song to be and we’ve always agreed it would be something by Michael Buble or Jamie Cullum because we listened to them a lot at the beginning of our relationship and FH says they remind him of me. We even kind of agreed on a song without saying, “yes, that is it, that is our first dance song.” Jamie Cullum’s But For Now.
“But For Now”
Sure I know you’d like to have me
Talk about my future
And a million words or so to fill you in about my past
Have I sisters or a brother
When’s my birthday how’s my mother
Well my dear in time I’ll answer all those things you ask
But for now I’ll just say I love you
Nothing more seems important somehow
And tomorrow can wait come whatever
Let me love you forever but right now
Right now
Some fine day when we go walking
We’ll take time for idle talking
Sharing every feeling as we watch each other smile
I’ll hold your hand you’ll hold my hand
We’ll say things we never had planned
Then we’ll get to know each other in a little while
But for now let me say I love you
Later on there’ll be time for so much more
But for now meaning now and forever
Let me kiss you my darling then once more
Once more
But for now let me say I love you
Later on I must know much more of you
But for now here and now how I love you
As you are in my arms I love you
I love you
I love you
Then the Grammy’s were on Sunday and Justin Timberlake and Al Green performed the Reverend’s Let’s Stay Together and I said, “that would make a really good first dance song,” and FH perked right up… so now this may be our first dance song.
“Let’s Stay Together”
I, I’m so in love with you
Whatever you want to do
Is all right with me
‘Cause you make me feel so brand new
And I want to spend my life with you
Since, since we’ve been together
Loving you forever
Is what I need
Let me be the one you come running to
I’ll never be untrue
Let’s, let’s stay together
Lovin’ you whether, whether
Times are good or bad, happy or sad
Whether times are good or bad, happy or sad
Why somebody, why some people break up
Then turn around and make up
I just can’t see
You’d never do that to me (would you, baby)
Staying around you is all I see
(Here’s what I want us to do)
(repeat to fade):
Let’s, we oughta stay together
Loving you whether, whether
Times are good or bad, happy or sad
What is your first dance song?
Our Officiant
Choosing the person to officiate our wedding was probably the easiest part so far…
I met our Officiant (we’ll call her Pastor L) when I was in high school. Pastor L had known my youth group leader (we’ll call her D) growing up and came to work at our church with D as the Children’s Ministries Director. Pastor L was young and fun and just full of energy and you couldn’t help but love her.
When Pastor L had her son (son L), I was over there babysitting all the time. Son L was the only kid I’ve ever babysat for who put his toys away after he used them, before we took out a new one and without being told! I’m not even that neat and an adult.
Then a few years later Pastor L was ordained a Presbyterian Minister, I was there at her ordination and watch son L and his friends in the nursery (or we all watched Veggie Tales). After the service D asked Pastor L to officiate at her upcoming wedding and I knew then I too wanted Pastor L to officiate at mine.
Over the years Pastor L and I lost touch, but about a year ago we (FH and I) ran into her at Cheesecake Factory with some friends. Even though we hadn’t spoken in years we were right back where we were before and I told FH as we walked out of the restaurant that she was the one I wanted to perform our ceremony when we got married and he was on board.
Fast forward to 2 weeks ago, FH has asked me to marry him and we’re in midst of venue searching, I had heard that Pastor L had moved to a very nearby city (in fact the on FH lives in also) and was Assistant Pastor at a start up church, I looked the church up online and called the number… no-one answered so I left a message. A week later when Pastor L called me I was so excited to tell her I was engaged and I wanted her to perform the ceremony, but Pastor L didn’t remember me 😦 or at least the last name they had written down… apparently I mummbled on my message because when she asked me who I was and I started to describe myself she was said, “That is not your name!” Once we straightened out my last name she felt horrible and we had a big laugh. She told me she was preaching at her new church next Sunday and I told her we’d be there.
Well we went to the church last Sunday and I LOVE IT! Pastor L had told a bunch of people about our embarrassing mix-up with my name and proceeded to tell everyone else she introduced us to the story. Her sermon was great and FH loved her. I’m so excited to have Pastor L back in my life and performing our wedding ceremony. Her new church is great and FH and I are going to start attending regularly 🙂
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