Do Not Be Alarmed

Check your mail some time soon. The invitations sminvitations of the previous post have now been safely handed to the fine people at the U.S. Postal Service. There were a few challenges, but what is life without a little adversity to spice it up?

Invitations Smivitations, Who Needs 'em?

I find myself in a situation that tests the magnitude of my patience, and I think that I've almost lost this battle. It all started with a dream several weeks ago. Our wedding was going to be happening in a week, and there was a multitude of things that hadn't been done, in particular, invitations were not sent out. We were expecting that people would actually come having not been invited. I was scared and distraught, and I awoke to the banging sound as if an old car was backfiring that my A/C currently makes everytime it turns itself on or off (that story is for a different blog). I didn't get too upset about my nightmare as this is not the first wedding nightmare that I have had, and I'm sure it won't be the last.

The cliffnoted version of what followed...

• Mom calls Party City to get an update on invitations-Party City Doesn't Answer
• Mom thinks Party City is closed-Shannon thinks mom has a serious case of FBSS (Female Bad Scenario Syndrome), it does run in our family
• Mom and I go up to Party City-in fact, they are closed (A mother's instinct is almost always correct!)
• Lots of phonecalls to lots of people
• Conclusion: After 5 weeks of waiting-Invitations were NEVER ordered by Party City!
• Enter: Bridezilla Shannon
• Invitations ordered-RUSH, should be here Friday
• Invitations not here on Friday-"apparently" UPS tried to deliver them on Thursday, but it didn't happen.

It is now Monday and yet, no invitations are in my hands. Am I stressed? Of course! Have I cried? Multiple times! Am I ready to throw down with some Party City employees? They should seriously watch their backs!

Reception Food Tasting

The preview tasting of the caterer's reception food totally rocked. Shannon, Chris Floyd, and I spent two hours at the Shoreline Grill wining, dining, and working on The Plan(tm) for The Day.

Everyone says that the bride and groom don't get to eat during the reception due to the amount of Hubbub and the excitement. Based on this food tasting, I am going to be eating at the reception no matter what it takes. I apologize in advance if we're catching up, and my conversation sounds like "Hmmph, chomp, Hurrrmph..."

Without giving away too much, there were a few all-stars:

• The parmesan-crusted chicken over penna pasta with preserved lemon sauce
• The best darn grilled shrimp I have ever tasted
• Some fancy little tart things

For the Commish, there was a fine assortment of absolutely delicious sauces ranging from a fresh basil to chipotle aioli. Feel free to sauce it up.

The food is going to be good. I look forward to seeing yall there. I'll be the guy in the tux at the front of the buffet line.

Honeymoon: Bodacious

The Honeymoon:
We will be departing on an action-packed sailing of the Carnival Conquest in a balcony suite. We leave on the Sunday after the wedding, so please don't let us drink too much champagne.

Itenerary:
Ports of call include Montego Bay, Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, and Cozumel, Mexico.

Planned Activities:

• Having a cold 'girlie' drink with a name like Bahama Mama, Goombay Smash, or Caribbean Breeze
• Flirting with serious sunburn but emerging merely lightly browned/pinked
  
• Not competing in the "Hairy Chest Contest" at the pool deck
• Definitely trying to compete in the Newlywed Game show on board
• Sleeping my rear off on the balcony with the ocean below
• Getting my hair braided in Jamaica. lol.

So, like, I pay you a lot of money to do THIS to me, Mon?

What I've Learned From Bridezillas

There are many tips to be found from those all women networks, We, Oxygen, etc. One show I’ve found to be most helpful in planning the wedding is Bridezillas.

Here are a few things I’ve learned from this underrated show…

FASHION

• If your car can’t fit your veil and/or dress, you need to seriously rethink the fashion statement you are trying to make.
• Veils are expensive, but if you are paying $1,500.00 for a wedding veil, you are getting robbed.

LOVE YOUR WEDDING PARTY

• Your girlfriends are most likely spending hundreds of dollars on dresses they probably won’t wear again, hosting parties in your honor, getting you intoxicated at your bachelorette party, coming in town for every shower, and generally doting at your every need. It is best not treat them like they are still in their terrible twos on your wedding day.
• If you are choosing to get married in your late twenties like I am, chances are, most of your wedding party has been in a wedding before. Although your wedding may be in a different place with a different dress or tux, the procedures are probably the same. Most likely they know how and when to walk down an isle, and after little direction, they know where to stand. If by chance someone in your wedding party has yet to be in a wedding or at least gone to a wedding in the last 30 years, I find it very unnecessary to bark and yell at them. They probably like to take direction just like you do, in a calm, even tempered manner, and they will probably respond better as well.
• It is best not to belittle, threaten, or make your fiancé cry uncontrollably in the weeks prior to your wedding. He has not tied the knot with you yet, and you may be spending extra money on sending out those, “We regret to inform you that our daughter Suzy Q, will not be marrying Billy Bob,” announcements.

BE PREPARED AND HAVE FAITH IN YOUR GUESTS

• Bridezillas are a direct result of being unprepared. Bridezillas are often very nice people who waited until the day of the wedding to do many things that could have been done weeks in advance or that don’t need to be done at all. I watched a recent episode where a bride was stressing out about the table placements. She was still making the list up until minutes prior to the ceremony. Yes, in her beautiful dress, she was writing down who was going to sit where at her reception. She was talking about how this person doesn’t want to sit by this person, and how many problems were caused by this. Solution: let your guests sit where they want. I’m assuming if Billy Bob doesn’t want to sit with Suzy Q after their horrible break up, Billy Bob, will choose a place other than Suzy Q’s table to sit! Have faith in your guest’s ability to make these decisions on their own.

DECORATIONS

• Your guests are not keeping track of how many Japanese lanterns you have hanging, or how big the flower arrangements are on your table. They don’t notice the green hanging thing that you spent an extra $1,000.00 to have in the centerpieces. Quite frankly, you are lucky if they notice the centerpieces at all. I’ve yet to go to a wedding and think, “those centerpieces really sucked!”

In conclusion, besides figuring out that I will never choose to be in a wedding for a friend with a type A personality, I’ve learned not to sweat the small stuff, delegate often, trust the talents of your friends and family members, and focus on what is really important…that you are uniting with someone you plan on spending the rest of your life with. In the end, most Bridezillas let go of their controlling nature, if not to portray the perfect bride, but because they finally see what they had been missing the whole time, that the wedding is all about you, your soul mate, and most of all LOVE.

How We Met

A good part of the story of a relationship and a wedding is the "How We Met" story. There are really two parts to this narrative. First, under what circumstances did these two people out of the random billions in the world happen to cross paths. Second and most importantly, why did these two people start holding hands, cooing at each other, and travelling to family christmas' in places like Abilene and Tuscaloosa?

Ours is the good old fashioned friend of a friend story. I like friends of my friends, because someone who has befriended me probably has pretty good taste. Well, the lovely miss Shannon started showing up at some social activities in Austin at the behest of SuperFriend/Groomsman to All, Chris Floyd.

In particular, I can recall a Super Bowl Party and a bowling night here in Austin. At this time, both of us were not looking for dates. I just remember being surprised that a girl was actually hanging out with us guys.

A funny thing happened on the way to the American Idol finale. One day, Shannon sent an e-mail to her group of friends asking if anyone could record the upcoming episode of the American Idol television show. As a southern gentleman and owner of Tivo, I sprang into action.

When I delivered the tape, we started talking. Hours later, some kind of little radar in my heart started blipping and picking up a reading. This beautiful, intelligent teacher (COOL!) girl suddenly seemed very intriguing. One thing led to another, and suddenly we're sitting down for our first date at uber date spot, Romeo's.

Fantasia: Bringing People Together Since 2004

This has been a wonderful life-changing couple of years. And it all started with a tape of American Idol Season 3. (I'm just hoping that we find more success than Fantasia Barrino did)