Pictures Pictures Pictures!

Everything turned out perfect... the weather, the food, the friends and family.... and the cupcakes!

Thank you to everyone for sharing in our day (those near and far).
And a special thank you to Dana our photographer for the great pictures:

More to come!

2 weeks to go!

How did that happen?
It seems like just last week when I still had months of time to finish everything... much less need to worry about lists, checks, organizing, reservations, packing.
Ahh... to be able to relax again... what I wouldn't give for an extra 2 weeks :)

Actually, I think I'm good with where things are. Just some small stuff to complete in the next couple weeks.

I think at this point, we're seriously just looking forward to seeing everyone and some time to relax on our vacation time.


(I'm trying not to sweat the small stuff... we'll see how that works!)

Hotel Information

Ok...
Time to think about partying!

I have blocked off a section of rooms at Country Inn & Suites by Carlson in Plymouth.
They are giving us a special rate for both Friday and Saturday (Aug 21/22nd).
A standard King/2 Queen bd room is $94
King Suite is $104

You can book for the 1 night (Sat August 22nd) or both (Fri & Sat), your choice.

*** Be sure and mention the Collins/Thompson Wedding Group***
There is a cut-off date of August 7th- which means they will only guarantee to have the rooms available until then, but if you call after August 7th, and they still have rooms, they will still give you the special rate.

Breakfast is included too!

Hotel Number: (763) 473-3008 or (800) 456-4000

There is other hotels in the area too if you prefer somewhere else. I've listed some on the right hand side of this page.

A Map from our hotel to Brookview Golf:
View Larger Map


If you book, and think you may be interested in a shuttle service from the reception to the hotel, please let me know ASAP. They would be able to book one for me, but I need to let them know as soon as possible.

See you soon!

Invitations

Well, the invitations have gone out! Yeaaa.
I'm finishing up just a small handful of the rest this weekend, but most have gone out :)

There has been a question of if children are welcome: the answer is yes.
Of course! Morgan needs playmates there!
Please just let me know (either on the RSVP or drop a line) of how many children will be attending with you.

We're looking forward to seeing everyone soon!

Oh how time flys

I think the reality is setting in that the count down is shrinking, and fast.
I dropped my dress off at the seamstress this week.
It felt very strange to put on my sparkly dress, with all the accessories, and look into the mirror.
Of course, that mirror also told me... where's that 10 lbs you were going to loose?

It also felt surreal to go with Chris to pick up his suit and shirt.
I must say, it's a pretty cool thing to see him dressed up. Since he works in his Dickies all week, then comes home and puts on the sweats (kind of like me too!), it's a sexy thing to see him in a suit ;)

The invitations should be going out this weekend. So definitely look for those and pop your spiffy RSVP card (that I spent what seemed like an eternity designing) into the mail. Or... you can keep my lovely artwork for yourself and RSVP to your right too!

We'll see you in less than 2 months... or whatever that ticker says up there!
~

Busy Bee

Want to see what my last week looked like?


That's confetti up there. Yep, confetti I'm making for the cupcakes. I'm polka dot obsessed.
I told you.. when I get an idea in my head, I just can't let it go! It's a big project... but I'll have time to gradually finish it.

Chris got a suit too! Yeahhhhhhhh.
(I was getting a little nervous in that category)
Ties should be done this week. Another yeahhhhhhhhh.
It's coming along!

I think I need rehab

I have been seriously addicted to etsy.com lately.
I started with just a couple things here and there. (We actually have an etsy seller making the guy's ties since we couldn't find the "right" look in stores)
Then, it turned into "hey, these are cool", and justifying more purchases by thinking "at least I'm getting the hang of things here and can help my mom out with selling the kaddies on etsy".
So, I've now told myself S-T-O-P buying.... Period.... Break time.

Is there an etsy rehab out there?

On a more "wedding" note:
The RSVP/Guestbook online seems to be working great.
If you have a moment, please drop us a line on the link to your right.

More to come soon- it's a busy week ahead!

~

Newest Projects

It's been a week of getting crafty.
I started with our favors, doing allot of cutting, stamping, gluing, and ribbon making.
And I'm only halfway there with those.

I took a break from favors, did some shopping at JoAnn's, then did a little experimenting with boutonnieres.
Here's what I came up with:


I made 6 this week. Each one I did a little bit differently-but with the same materials.

I wanted to come up with something that was fun, that I could do ahead of time, and didn't look cheesy-fake. So, I chose the creamy white paper flower, with a red silky rose with crystal embellishment. And of course the polka dot feathers.
Did I accomplish that, or does it look too... funky?

I've come acrossed stumped on another thing:
I've been talking to our cupcake baker (Franklin Bakery- best place in the whole wide world!!).
They're going to do the Turtle Cupcakes (one of their signatures) and a custom white cupcake with cream cheese frosting (what Chris wanted). They asked me if I wanted any decoration on the white ones, and I thought... Hey yeah- red polka dot confetti sprinkles would be cool.
So, they told me that they only have sugar crystals, and red jimmies (think donut sprinkles), but if I wanted to bring my own in, I could.
Super- no problem.
Yeah- easier said than done. I have searched every possible vendor online and nobody sells the PLAIN RED CONFETTI. I can find pastels, and primary colors mix. Even red confetti with Christmas trees. But, do I really want to pick out all the red from those- um, no!

Big stuff- easy. It's the little things that stump you. (Taken from my sister earlier today!)

Does anyone out there in web world have any suggestions?

~ nik

I need some help

I need some suggestions, opinions, plain... flat out.... ideas.

1st, I've been toying with ideas for flowers, boutonnieres, bouquets, and all that fun stuff. I really am not into spending $ in this category, because although I think they're pretty, they're not really on the top 10 list for my budget.
What I've narrowed down, is that the centerpieces are going to be the cupcakes on the tables- so no need to worry about flower arrangements there.
Bouquets: I'm trying out the homegrown thing, and I planted some red President Canna Lilies.
I will probably mix these in with some daisies, baby's breath, and greenery.
Here's what President Cannas look like:


Boutonnieres: I may try the homemade thing here too, but I'm worried being that it's August, these are not going to last, and may take up more time than I'm willing to give them.
So, what do you think about mixing it up a bit?
Maybe something like this: http://www.flickr.com/photos/arguingthemobius/sets/72157604350351185/
(You may need to copy and paste that)
This lady does allot of weddings- she's actually booked through June, but I emailed her to get some pricing. Since her bouquets are $20, I figured this may be somewhat economical too.
I like the craftiness, and originality of the origami look, but would it be to weird?
(I'm thinking just the boutonnieres here)
Hey, at least these would last forever!

Ok, next:
Seating.
This has really been getting to me.
I am at a loss at how to handle going from ceremony to indoor reception with the chairs.
The staff there will set up the tables and chairs to my seating preference ONCE. Meaning, I could either have them set up 100+ chairs out on the deck, where we plan to have the ceremony, and leave the tables inside chair-free. Then I would need to figure out how to get those chairs BACK to the tables for guests. OR, I can have them set up all the chairs and tables inside, and figure out what to do for the ceremony.
Get my problem?
I don't know how I feel about asking all our guests to pick up their chair, and claim stake to a table inside. Isn't that a little rude?
But, if I appoint others to take all the chairs inside... wouldn't that be a clusterf*ck to try and do following the ceremony- where people will be hanging out? And how many people would I need to do that?
They do have about 5 picnic tables outside that I need to figure out what to do with too.

Last couple things...
I'm looking for some recommendations on:
1. Alterations for my dress
2. Hair stylist

Thanks!

Accomplished

More stuff done... yeah!

We've chosen our caterer (why does that word look so funny spelled out?).
We've chosen Henry's Catering, and we're pretty excited to go with them.
They're located near St Cloud, and we feel pretty lucky they're willing to come down this way (for a small fee). They went out of their way to have us try out their food, and we loved the stuffed chicken breasts! So...they're hired!

The cake part is down too. We were really torn between two places. But, I think we've got it down to Franklin Bakery in Mpls.

The bridesmaid dresses are a check! I really just wanted the girls to be comfortable, so I tried to give them free reign to pick out what they liked as long as it was in red. I think they felt weird about that though! :)
You have to wear it, so you might as well like it... right?

The toughest part we're having is Chris' suit.
We just haven't found the right thing yet.

The invitations are surprisingly easy. I ordered paper through Anchor Paper, then used their diecut machine to cut the pocket template. Now I just need to print and assemble.

Narrowing the search

I feel like we've accomplished allot over the past couple weeks.

Our DJ is booked, the minister is booked, and we have a few more appointments coming up for cake & caterers.
Now, I get to start some of the smaller projects. The crafty stuff!
It's weird though, the more time I spend researching how to do the ideas in my head, I come up with more ideas... which is NOT good for the budget!
So, I've decided to get things looking the way I want, and to be kind to the budget, I'm taking on some of the creative jobs myself. Ambitious, huh?
I just finished making cake stands today- still have to spruce them up a bit- maybe ribbon.
Next is the invitations. Yes, I am tackling a big job there!
Luckily I have a mother-in-law-to-be who knows more about that part than I do, and knows good places to shop!
Then the favors... which I'll keep to myself for right now.
And I've already started Morgan's headband too!

Thank god I actually have some time during the week (nap time mostly) to get this stuff done, although I'll probably end up with glue under my nails, and a paper cut or two!

Clothes, clothes and more clothes

Nikki found her dress... woo hoo.
After being rather frustrated a few weeks ago when I started the "trying on process", I was not really excited to do it again, this time at The Wedding Shoppe in St Paul.
I think I tried on about 15 dresses on Monday night.
One was ok.
As I was putting my street clothes back on, our fabulous consultant peeked in to say she had just one more if I wanted to try it. They just got it in, and it was more my style I was looking for.
Perfect!
Of course it's the very last one that I fall in love with!

So now it's Chris' turn!

We're on the lookout for something like this (Second picture down):
*You can click ON the picture to see a larger view.


Let me know if you happen to spot anything!

Welcome to our wedding blog!

So, right now it's the planning process. It's been overwhelming to say the least. What we have decided on, and booked is our ceremony & reception place.
Here is Brookview Golf Course-Community center in Golden Valley:

Entrance

Deck- where we plan to have the ceremony:

Map:

View Larger Map