12.28.2009

Beagles at the Beach: Part I

Since I'm still sorting through and organizing our wedding pics (!!!), I decided to start recaps our honeymoon in the mean time.

We had originally considered postponing our honeymoon to sometime in 2010, but I am so glad we decided to go soon after the wedding (we left the following week).  We were in dire need of some rest and relaxation and it was nice to take a break from "real life", even if it was just for a week.

If you remember (or if you don't), Mr. Beagle's parents graciously gifted us the use of their timeshare in San Jose del Cabo (about 30 mins. away from Cabo San Lucas).  We left Austin on the Saturday after our wedding a.k.a. Halloween.  Arriving at the airport in San Jose del Cabo was very overwhelming for me.  As soon as we left the customs area, we were I was immediately bombarded by Timeshare salesmen trying to coax us into stopping to talk to them.  I assume this because they target Americans/non Spanish speakers/women... so after several confusing moments where I thought they were persons we needed to meet, I latched on to Mr. Beagle's arm and we walked quickly to the airport exit.  We were aware that salesmen were aggressive in the airport, but I had no idea they would be so pushy and persuasive!  Fortunately this was the only location where we encountered this behavior and once we exited the airport, it was relatively easy to find our prearranged transportation to our hotel.

I didn't take many pictures of our hotel/condo, but here's a shot I snagged from their website:



After we arrived to our temporary home, we settled in, ate some food at the onsite restauraunt, and crashed.  We were so exhausted from a day of traveling and time changes.

The next day we woke up bright and early to eat breakfast at the hotel restaurant.  We found out they serve a buffet every Sunday morning, which was soooo good.



We nommed on pancakes, fried potatos, migas, and beans.  The green mixture in the above picture tasted similar to enchiladas without meat.  They also served a variety of cereal and breads for those not wanting a buffet of Mexican food.  Mr. Beagle ate their menudo, which I decided to pass on.  The coffee in Mexico is made with cinnimon and is very sweet- Mr. Beagle enjoyed his, and I (who normally drinks coffee as black as can be) did not.  They also had a variety of agua frescas.  We tried the papaya which was not very good (or must be an acquired taste), but the orange was so delicious. 


After we could not stuff any more food in our faces eat any more, we spent the rest our Sunday relaxing at the pool (uh, happy hour starting at 2 anyone?), exploring the hotel and beach area, and researching some possible activities that were available.


Although we weren't able to swim in the beach by our hotel because of strong rip tides, it provided us with a gorgeous view.  The beach was not really a smooth sandy, beach, but it felt more like tiny bits of rocks. Walking barefoot is not recommended. :)






...Stay tuned for part II where we venture into Cabo San Lucas.


12.17.2009

Last Minute Project: Cake Topper

I guess I should back up a second here.  Before I start talking about our cake topper, I should really discuss our cake first.  I wanted something simple, tiered, no fondant.... that was pretty much the extent of my criteria.  I have seen our baker's handy work at the wedding of a good friend that I attended:




So I knew that our baker would do a wonderful job no matter what I specified, but I really wanted to keep it simple.

-------------------------------------Now back to our original story-----------------------------------------
 
Once upon a time, long ago, when I first started reading Weddingbee, I fell in love with a certain Bee's wedding.  Actually, I really fell in love with her cake.  So, using her cake as inspiration, I found this really cute salt & pepper shaker set:



Look familiar?  They should.  I was so inspired by Mrs. Cookie's idea to use these as cake toppers that I high-tailed it over to my nearest Target to search for them (of course, I lucked out and found them). Remember her beautiful cake?



After I bought them, I put them away in my craft room and didn't look at or think about them much until about the month before the wedding. When I started doubting my decision to use them atop the cake.
So I went back to the drawing board to find an alternative cake topper.  I absolutely love this book and was immediately smitten with this picture:



I really liked the idea of using bird cake toppers and I thought fabric ones would go perfectly with our theme (if you could call it that).  Instead of using the pattern and materials shown in the book, I bought some felt and thread on one of my many trips to JoAnns and created my own pattern.  After cutting, tracing, stitching, and stuffing, I came up with this:



You can't really tell from the picture, but I added different shades of purple felt for tail feathers.  I used embroidery thread to make the stitches and I had some left over polyester stuffing to fill the inside of the bird.

The original plan was to make two of them, sew in some floral wire (16 gauge) into the bottom of each bird, and stick them in the top tier of our cake.  However, being the indecisive girl that I am, I changed my mind yet AGAIN and ended up going with something completely different.  But you'll have to wait for my recaps to see what it is :) ( I know, I know... the suspense!!)

Did you use a traditional bride and groom cake topper or did you use something a little out of the ordinary?

Last Minute Project: Bathroom Basket(s)

When I first saw our venue, I knew I wanted to include a cute basket full of goodies in the women's restroom.  Women are pretty easy to figure out as far as needs go:



I ended up finding some cute baskets on sale (for half off!) at JoAnns.  The cloth covering inside the basket was originally beige and of course I just had to dye it purple- I used Rit dye and followed the instructions on the back of the box.  To get the purple color shown, I mixed one part purple dye and one part black dye.  It looks lovely, I think.  I attached a small tag on one end that encouraged guests to use the items, neatly arranged all the items, and I was done (quick and easy).
As far as the goodies go, I included a few packages of gum, mouthwash, dental floss, hair ties, a tide pen (a serious life saver for me), tums, tampons, deodorant, ibuprofen, oil absorbing sheets, and hand sanitizer.  I also picked up two bottles of lotion at Bath & Body Works while it was on sale one day- Cherry Blossom (which I loooovve) & (I think) Sea Island Cotton.  At the end of the night, most of the products were used so it was a project that was totally worth it.

I really didn't think the men would enjoy such a basket in their restroom, so I left this instead:



Tums, ibuprofen, mouthwash and gum.... and three containers ($4 each at Target) of mints, lifesavers, and starbursts. This was a big hit among the men (seriously, I got so many comments about "the candy in the bathroom") and a good male alternative (IMO) to standard bathroom basket.
Overall, the project cost was around $50 (this includes the containers, 2 baskets (since I originally thought I would put one in each restroom and then changed my mind), two boxes of dye, and all of the medical/dental/beauty/food supplies).
Are you including any little "extras" for your guests at your reception?

11.25.2009

We've Come a Long Way

It took nearly 7 years to get here, but we're here.  We've gone from this:


(taken around the time we transitioned from "just friends" to officially dating)

To this:


Happy Month-a-versary Mr. Beagle!!!!!
Although the last month has gone by entirely to quickly for us, we have enjoyed every second of it.  Since this is our first official anniversary, we celebrated with a nice dinner out at one of our favorite eateries and good conversation.  I look forward to celebrating each month until we reach one year and then we'll probably cut our celebrating down to a yearly event (or maybe not, we'll have to see!)

Will you be celebrating your anniversary monthly or yearly?

*Thank you to Ashley with Studio 563 for her ah-mazing photography!
**And in other news, we've received our wedding pictures!!! So stay tuned, there is more to come!

11.19.2009

A Moment of Weakness

After I got married, I assumed I would give up my obsession with wedding blogs.  Even in the weeks leading up to our wedding I refused to look at wedding inpiration sites because 1) I had no time or, more importantly, 2) I was fearful I would end up seeing some detail or project that I would fall in love with and need to incorporate into our event or, even worse, 3) that I would see a gorgeous wedding and then regret the entire theme of our wedding and proceed to sulk.
Last week, after seeing our wedding pictures for the first time, I let down my guard and revisited the wedding sites whose posts had piled up in my Google Reader.  I immediately regretted it.  The wonderful memories for our wedding day were clouded by so many things I wish I had done.  I wish we had taken more pictures with our wedding party, I wish I had remembered to bring our invitations to be photographed, I  wish we had hired a videographer, I wish I had made enough time to make signs for our chairs, I may have even started regretting not having a bouquet of real flowers, and the list could go on and on.
I really felt bad about it for about two days, but then I remembered that we had a pretty good day.  If  anything did not go according to plan, we were oblivious to it.  After the ceremony, I felt complete happiness- a feeling I never expected.  (I mean I figured I would be happy, but not that happy, right?)  And best of all, Mr. Beagle and I are now married and it is better than I ever imagined.  It definately feels different- a very, very good different.
It seems strange to me that so much time and planning go into one day that lasts a total of 6 or 7 hours and then it's over in what feels like a few seconds.  I can't wrap my head around that just yet.  I'm just trying to remember our day, one moment at a time, so that I don't forget what a wonderful day it was.

11.01.2009

PWC-Post Wedding Chop

Like others that have gone before me, I was sooooo ready for a change after the wedding. So ready that I made a hair appointment for the following Friday. Here's the before (taken about a month ago at my final shower with my sister- can you see the resemblance :) ?):


My hair has been about the same length and style for around 3 years, until now:


Bangs! I haven't had them since I was about ten :). I'm still getting used to the feeling of hair on my forehead, but I really love them!

Did you get a PWC? How soon after the wedding did you make your appointment?

10.29.2009

Day-After Traditions


In Mr. Beagle's family, they have a tradition of gathering as a family and eating Menudo, which is a spicy soup usually served for breakfast, on the morning after the wedding. Although I've tried this soup, I'm not a big fan of it (it's one of those things that you either love or hate), but Mr. Beagle loves it.

So, Sunday morning, we trekked over to my new in-laws' house for breakfast. When we arrived, we (unfortunately) found out that the Menudo had some how gone bad overnight, but my in-laws came through with a back up plan to serve breakfast tacos filled with potato & egg and chorizo & egg, fresh fruit, and Mexican sweet bread:

source

While we ate, extended relatives trickled in to join the breakfast and wish us congratulations. It was really nice conversing with Mr. Beagle's relatives in a more relaxed atmosphere and enjoying the delicious food. I wish we could have stayed longer to visit with more of our wedding guests, but we had to leave early to take part in another tradition: visiting the elders who weren't able to make it to our wedding.

The rest of Sunday was spent driving to and from Laredo to visit Mr. Beagle's Abuela and Abuelo (grandmother and grandfather), who was in the hospital. We intended to visit his other grandfather who lives about an hour east of Laredo, but due to time constrictions, we weren't able to squeeze it in.

Overall, I found it was a nice way to spend our first day as a married couple. How did you spend the day after your wedding? Did you take part in any traditions?






10.27.2009

Mascara Alternative: Dyed Lashes

Yay, I'm Married! (Okay, now that I've got that out of my system.... :) )

On Saturday, after my hair was set and my make-up was being prepped, I voiced my concern about mascara to my stylist. The problem is that I already have long, thick lashes and, therefor, I don't wear mascara often. Because of this, It feels weird when I have it on and I think it makes my eyes look odd. That's when my stylist told me she should have suggested making an appointment to have my lashes dyed. Although it wouldn't make them longer or thicker, she said it would make them darker.

I, being naive about make-up and most beauty products in general, had never heard of this and now I am intrigued. I did some brief research on the topic via a google search and found out you can also buy dye if you want to do it at home. I am not that brave and would definitely have someone do it for me at least the first time. The only problem I see with this is that it's dye, which means I can't just take it off (like I can with mascara) if I don't like it. Also, I am a little concerned about having chemicals that close to my eyeballs.

Since Mr. Beagle and I are planning to do another photo shoot in our nice clothes.... or at least with me in my dress, I think it's the perfect excuse to do a little lash experimentation. So my question is: Have you ever dyed your lashes or brows? What was your experience with it? Would you recommend it? Did you have any bad side effects? Do you have any other mascara alternatives?

10.23.2009

One Last Post

...until I'm a Mrs.!
To Mr. Beagle, tomorrow I will be marrying my best friend. Through all are ups and downs I know now, more than ever, that this is the best choice for me and I can't hardly wait. I had a wonderful time with you at our rehearsal tonight, but I know that the real deal will be even better. Thanks for putting up with all my faults and supporting me through thick and then. You have made me a better person and, to put it simply, I love you.
To my mom, I know how much you wanted to be there with me tomorrow, and I am so, so, so sorry that it just is not physically possible. Just know that you will be with me in my heart and in my thoughts. So much of who I am is because of you and I hope that you knew that before you said goodbye. I will miss you more tomorrow than I have these long months, but I know you'll be watching for above and I'll feel your presence.
This journey with Weddingbee has been one of the best ever. I am so lucky to have had this opportunity and I hope that it has been as good for all of you as it has for me. I am excited to get back as a Mrs. with yet more DIY and, of course, some great recaps! You are a truly wonderful community, made up of a great group of friends, and for that I thank you.


XOXO,
Miss Beagle

10.20.2009

The Burdens of Technology




I know we are all too familiar with the cheesy "silence your phone" commercials during movie previews. Practically everyone owns a cell phone today, and while most people are used to silencing it during meetings, church, etc., I think it is important to remind people that a wedding is also the occasion to "unplug". In fact at one wedding that Mr. Beagle and I attended, the church was going to charge the couple an extra fee for every cell phone that went off during the ceremony. Thankfully, no annoying ringtones were heard throughout the ceremony and fees were avoided.

The other technology item that may cause disturbances during the ceremony is the digital camera. Of course practically everyone owns one of these too. I wouldn't have even thought to mention anything about cameras if our church coordinator hadn't said something to me at our last meeting. She told me that flash photography is frowned upon during the ceremony... even from the professional photographer. I actually understand where they are coming from. As valuable as the photos from each moment are, sometimes the photographer/camera can detract from the present moment- the union and marriage. This may not be as strict in another setting, but since we will be getting married in a church, I really wouldn't expect anything less.

I was going to originally make mention of this somewhere in our programs, but then I forgot to include it *doh!*. The next best thing I've come up with is to make a small sign that will sit beside the guest book and program basket that will say something along the lines of:

"Please remember to silence your cell phones and refrain from taking flash photographs during the ceremony. Thank You, Mr. & Miss. Beagle."

Have you thought about the burdens of technology at your event? Are you reminding your guests about the proper etiquette concerning phones?

10.15.2009

Theft at a Wedding

source

This past weekend, my FILs attended a wedding at a hotel here in Austin. They had a wonderful time, but we were appalled, as were they, when they proceeded to retell us the story of the card box.
Apparently the card basket was located outside of the reception area, in the foyer. There was a security guard on duty and the couple had also hired a wedding coordinator. At some point during the reception (they think it was during the cake cutting) the ENTIRE card box and all it's contents was stolen. After realizing this had happened, guests immediately started calling retailers from which they had purchased gift cards, but unfortunately, the thief(ves) beat them to the punch. By the time the calls were placed, the retail stores had already been visited by the thieves and the gift cards were depleted.
On a happier note (if possible..), they believe it may have been hotel staff (although it hasn't been confirmed) that performed the theft, not any guests.
Now I've heard of people taking items from weddings like the bathroom basket, the centerpieces, an extra piece of cake.... but the couple's gifts? It's not only heartbreaking for the newlyweds to deal with that, but also the guests who brought them the gifts. It really makes you think twice about hiring people who are going to be around you and your loved ones at such an important event in your lives.
Although I feel like our vendors and invitees are beyond trustworthy, we are now thinking of moving our gift table into the reception area after it is opened/ during the dinner to prevent any "disappearances". I don't think our venue is as threatened by unwanted visitors compared to a hotel where people are coming and going, but I guess you can never be to sure.

Are you doing anything to protect your valuables on your important day?

**On a side note, I find it funny that there will be two loss prevention managers at our wedding (attending as guests) and one former loss prevention employee (Mr. Beagle!!), so I don't think we will have a problem ;)... although, at the wedding my in-laws attended, their were several lawyers at the reception, one of whom was the bride :O

A Cake Stand

This is one item I thought I didn't need. That was before wedding planning. After we picked out our cake, the baker offered to rent us a cake stand similar to this:


The catch? It was going to cost us $45 (for something I can't keep?!? uh, no thanks). At first I was going to forgo one all together, but then I kept seeing pictures like this:




all courtesy of Martha

Thus, my search for a cake stand began. I wasn't necessarily looking for a tall cake stand, just something to set the cake on so that the whole ensemble would look a little more formal. After about a month of casually browsing, I found this baby at TJ Maxx:


At only $12, I fell in love with it instantly and snatched it up before it could escape.


Unfortunately, after I contacted my baker to verify that our cake would indeed fit on the stand, I found out it would not. :( The good news is that I decided to keep the cake stand anyways because I loved it so much, but the bad news is that my search was not over.

Then, one day while I was running my weekly errands at Hobby Lobby, I found this:

Yes, it is a mirror. It was on sale and it is now our "cake stand (or platter if you will)". I'm happy that we'll be able to reuse it in our home after the wedding and it was only $20! Of course it will need some dusting....


I think it will go really well with our cake design that we have chosen (sorry, you'll have to wait until after the wedding to find out what it is :) ). Overall, I am really pleased with our finds and I'm excited to put them to use after it's all said and done!

Are you having a cake stand?

10.08.2009

Beagle Invites

Our invitations were semi-DIY. I ordered the actual invite and rsvp card from the White Aisle. Rebecca was really sweet and easy to work with- our invitations arrived in perfect order and on time! I decided to DIY the map and assemble them myself to save some money... although looking back I think what I saved in money was eaten up in the time I spent putting them together.

I originally planned on buying scrapbooking paper or wrapping paper to cut into liners, but I was unsuccessful. I finally gave up and decided to make my own. Our invitation envelopes were an odd size (5.5 x 7.5- the liner templates from paper-source DO NOT include this size :( ), so I created liners by tracing the envelope and trimming 2cm off all of the edges. I then stamped the design shown below onto each liner using some purplish ink. I bought all the paper products from Hobby Lobby. This is what our guests saw when they opened up their mail:



Instead of using an inner envelope, I used left over lace (from this project) which I cut into 2" wide strips to wrap around the envelope contents. I wrote the individual guests names on the square center piece of paper that also held the lace together.



There were two main parts of our invitation: the formal invite and the map and rsvp card, which I bundled separately. I also matted our invitation on purple scrapbooking paper. All the paper products were shades of purple.



I was actually intending to use this design from the White Aisle; however, at the last minute I decided to search the site for invitation wording and discovered that a new design had just been posted. I emailed Rebecca to change my design and I haven't looked back. :) Momma Beagle really wanted thermographic printing (raised/ embossed), so we went with that. It turned out really elegant and it's a nice compromise between digital and letterpress. Close-up of the matted invitation:




The bottom side of the map/rsvp bundle:



This map was a pain. I originally wanted to hand draw it, then scan it, and edit in photoshop. This was a big fat FAIL. I finally just used AutoCad to create our map. I print-screened the google map of our reception/ceremony locations and pasted it in a new dwg file. I then traced over the lines using a line tool and increased the line width of the route we wanted our guests to take. I converted it to a jpeg file and inserted the street labels and colored the lines using photoshop. The heart and butterfly were hand drawn.... I found out later that there are really cute free fonts online that could alternatively been used, but at that point it was too late.





The RSVP card:


The Ensemble:


Details:











I hand addressed all of the envelopes, using the same method I used for our save-the-dates. Surprisingly, it only took 1.5 ink vials to address the ~100 invitations we sent out. I also found some really cute stickers at Michaels that were on clearance that I used to seal the envelopes (I had hoped to encourage people to gently open the envelopes at the seal instead of cutting open the top and defeating the purpose of the liners).


I really hadn't intended on spending such a large amount of time on invitations, but I received many compliments from our guests about their uniqueness, so I'm hoping most of them will be keepsakes!

Was there a wedding project that took an unexpected turn for you?

10.05.2009

It's Really Happening

Hi, I'm Miss Beagle.  I used to blog here more frequently, but recently I find that I am swamped with starting last minute projects and wrapping up projects that I started a long time ago. All the cute posts full of DIY tutorials and pictures (um, like of my invitations that I've been meaning to post for the last two weeks!!!....) seem to keep getting pushed back.  I will try my hardest to get some of these posts out before our wedding day and sorry for the delay!

So, now that I've got the apology out of the way, I can move on to discuss the topic of this post.  This past weekend, I had my final bridal shower.  It was a little bittersweet because we had originally rescheduled it to October in hopes that my mom might be able to attend.  This weekend also marked another milestone- her birthday.  It was a point that was once looming in the future and has suddenly come and past.  I now have three weeks 'til the big day and it's finally starting to feel real.  I'm feeling a mixture of emotions:  nervous, anxious, excited, sad, and definitely ready to marry Mr. Beagle.     

Even though it still feels like I have so much to do in the next three weeks, I know that they are really going to fly by.  I'm trying to prepare myself for the timewarp that will happen on our wedding day by feeling out every single emotion that has suddenly surfaced and savoring every moment-good or bad- because this is only going to happen once.  While before I was wishing the engagement to quickly transform into marriage, I now find myself sad to see it coming to an end. I'm realizing that in three weeks, I will no longer be planning this wedding, stressed out by insignificant details, spend weekends holed up in my craft room to work on wedding projects.

The last two weeks have been a little rough around the Beagle house as we've been scrambling to finalized decisions.  I'll admit that there have been a few times when I have started some arguments and picked a few fights because the stress level is really up there and my emotions seem to be flying all over the place.  I've had to step back, consider my actions, remember the purpose- the central point- of all the planning, take a deep breath, apologize, and carry on.  Our marriage is the central point, and by coming back to that, our problems seem to work themselves out.  Maybe now because I'm aware of it, or maybe I'm looking for it, I seem to find signs, constant reminders, to come back to "our marriage" when I feel lost, stressed, anxious, nervous, sad, and even excited.  Because in three weeks, it will be real- and I can't wait.

Was there a specific point that the wedding & marriage started to feel real to you?  How have you dealt with the stress of planning in your relationship?

10.01.2009

When it comes to music, I'm lost...

I think my biggest fear about our wedding, is that no one will dance at the reception.  That it will be boring.  That our guests won't have fun.  That our families and friends won't mix and mingle.  I think it all boils down to our playlist, which we have yet to get started on because, really, we don't know where to start!

I've got the dinner music down and, though I haven't blogged about it yet, our cocktail hour is covered.  The only thing left is the "dance" music. Here's the problem:  My family listens to primarily to country/western.  His family listens to Tejano & Oldies.  We listen to NPR (and KUT, if you're in Austin... but for the most part thy play mellow music) :).  We don't go dancing, we're not taking lessons, more than likely our first dance (which is still undecided) will consist of the 6th grade sway a la the Candy Corns (although I doubt we will pull be able to pull off their awesomeness). 

So what do we play?  I would love to incorporate a good mix of country, oldies, tejano, '80s, and modern music.  Any suggestions are greatly appreciated- we need your help!!!!  What are/were must plays on your playlist?  What music/songs brought the most people onto the dance floor?  (Thanks in advance :) )

9.29.2009

Wedding Lasso, Arras, Biblio

In lieu of a unity candle, Mr. Beagle and I have decided to incorporate an aspect of his culture into our ceremony.  In Hispanic culture, there are three traditions during the ceremony that represent the couple's new unity. 

The Lasso:





It is essentially a large rosary, usually beaded or made of satin, with two loops so that it can be placed around the bride and groom.  The lasso forms the shape of a figure eight/ infinity which represents the couple's unity.  It is placed on the bride and groom after they say their vows and is taken off just before the end of the ceremony.  A prayer and/or reading usually accompanies the lasso portion of the ceremony.

The Arras:

These are thirteen coins, which are often gold or silver plated, that are presented to the bride by the groom.  Traditionally, they represent a dowery which symbolizes the groom's commitment and promise to care for the bride; her acceptance represents a promise to take care of the groom.  The number 13 represents Jesus and his twelve apostles.  Each coin is also said to represent on of the following: Love, Trust, Commitment, Respect, Joy, Happiness, Harmony, Wisdom, Wholeness, Nurturing, Caring, Cooperation and Peace.  They are usually placed in some sort of container. (The top left coin shows the design on the top of each coin, which is varied through different cultures).




 

 
(Mrs. Petunia and Mrs. Hydrangea also posted about the Arras ceremony and Mrs. Joey posted about a similar tradition:  the Arrhae).

The Biblio:

A bible is sometimes presented to the bride and groom, which becomes their family bible.  It symbolizes that their union is also with God and his love is their foundation. 

Each item is usually presented by a Padrino or Madrina (Godfather or Godmother).  These are people who have played an important role in either the bride's or groom's life.  They provide support to the couple throughout their marriage.

Because this tradition is honoring Mr. Beagle's culture, we have decided to select Padrinos/Madrinas from his side of the family.  Originally we thought we would select people from both of our families, but I felt that, although my family members would be honored, his family would appreciate the role more because it is an important aspect of their culture.  We are borrowing the lasso and arras from Mr. Beagle's parents and the Madrina who will be presenting our biblio is gifting it to us (I'm actually a little excited about receiving a bible that will be our family's!).  I am going to try to find a container for the arras that we can later use in our home (and might even double as a ring holder).  I've been looking for an excuse to get one of these....




What traditions are you incorporating into your ceremony?  If you are using one of the above, what readings or prayers did you use?

9.22.2009

Old & Borrowed

This past weekend, I traveled to Fredericksburg with my father and sister to visit my Opa and Oma (German for grandfather and grandmother).  Although the main purpose of the visit was to celebrate Opa's birthday, I secretly had other intentions.

Before my mom passed away, we had talked about what kind of jewelry I would wear with my dress.  We talked about me wearing the same jewelry she wore on her wedding day.  One of the items she wore was a bracelet, which she borrowed from her FMIL, the Oma I visited this weekend.  So, as we sat outside Sunday afternoon, I asked Oma if she still had the bracelet that my mom wore a little over thirty-two years ago.  She did and she was happy to let me borrow it for the wedding.  She told me it was originally her mother's bracelet, but she wasn't sure how her mother came into posession of it.  She even had the original box it came in.  I love the picture that was shown on the inside of the box top:



The bracelet is gold and even though it is a little scratched, I like that it shows it's age:



The second piece of jewelry my mom wore was a locket that belonged to my other Oma, my mom's mom.  My mom inherited it when her mom passed away.  Unfortunately, I never asked my Oma or my mom the origins of this necklace, so I'm not sure who gave it to Oma or why she received it.  It has her initials engraved on the top:

 

My mother and I share a middle name, which was also my Oma's first name. I think I might put a picture of both of them in this locket to keep them close to my heart.



I feel so lucky to be able to wear two items that are meaningful pieces to both sides of my family.  And now they are even more sentimental to me because my mom wore them first:




Are you wearing any heirloom items on your wedding day?  If not, what other meaningful items will you be carrying with you?

9.16.2009

The Party After the Party

With time flying by, we are rushing to get all the details for our wedding day lined up and in order. At this point, we are still trying to figure out what we want to do after the reception. We will be making our grand exit around 10:30, so it won't be too late. At this point, we have no set plans for a day-after brunch and we won't be leaving for our honeymoon until the following week. Taking all this in to consideration, I'm wondering how tired we are going to be, and whether we want to hang out with each other or enjoy the company of our friends and family from out of town. Then if we do plan a little "after party", where do we have it?
Mr. Beagle and I are pretty laid back, so I think we can pretty much agree that the downtown scene is out, but I wouldn't mind have a little gathering at our home or the neighborhood bar. A casual, relaxed atmosphere seems fitting.
Then, today, I read this exerpt from A Practical Wedding, about the pros of having a morning wedding:

"Afterwards. The strange thing is that when people voice concern about morning weddings, they normally ask you, "Well, what did you do afterwards?" Here is the scoop. Afterwards is *the best part.* We drove away from our venue, waving like crazy, at 2:45 pm. You know what we did? We went back to the hotel room we'd splurged on. We lounged around. We talked about the wedding. We giggled. We looked at our wedding rings. We blissed out. We went shopping at a used bookstore and bought books for our honeymoon flight. We went out to a really nice dinner, and I wore my wedding hair flower. We drank mojitos. We went to sleep. We woke up not-hung over. The after-the-wedding is the best part of getting married in the morning. Think about it this way: you're marrying your partner because you like spending time with them. Morning weddings give you lots of time to hang out together, married, on your wedding day. And then you wake up sober and happy. What could feel better than that?"

Although we won't be having a morning wedding, I'm torn between continuing the festivities with our loved ones and spending time with my husband :) on our wedding day, the day that only comes once.  Hmph. 

Are you having an "after party" or are you leaving the party to hang out with your new Hubby/ Wife?  Newly weds, what did you do and do you regret it?

9.11.2009

And Then There Were Three

Or I guess it would be four if you count my other ring.

About a month or so ago, Mr. Beagle and I finally completed our shopping for wedding rings. His requests were simple: inexpensive, no diamonds. We browsed through some jewelry stores, but the white gold rings were more than he wanted to spend and the tungsten/titanium rings seemed overpriced. After I saw Miss Lab's post on online ring shopping, I decided to peek around on Amazon to see what I could find. Finally after an hour of searching I placed an order for a titanium ring. A few days later, Mr. Beagle's (<$100) wedding ring arrived in the mail. :)

Unfortunately for Mr. Beagle, shopping for my wedding ring was a little more involved. I wanted a white gold ring to match with my engagenment ring.  I was really unsure about what other requirements I was looking for in a ring.  After many trips to jewelry stores, we finally ended up at the same store where we bought my engagement ring.  An hour later, we left with my ring and by the time we got in the car to drive home, I was pleading with Mr. Beagle to let me wear it.  Alas, he said no. :)

And now for some pictures:










Will your rings match?