This Will Be Our Year: Wedding Rituals

After a few pictures and a chance for guests to grab a drink, the DJ called everyone into the reception area to continue the cocktail hour inside, while we made our way onto the dance floor for our "grand entrance" (we boogied into the room to Wilco's Hoodoo Voodoo, which was the only adequately celebratory song for such an occasion, I think!), from which we would go straight into our first dance.

So let me tell you a little about this first dance business. I mentioned before that we were going to attempt a Danish wedding waltz, but we were really nervous about how it would play out on the wedding day. So in addition to our two private lessons, we practiced twirling around our living room almost every night for a month, sent the video to our wedding party, our DOC, our photographer, and our DJ just to make sure everyone was prepared for the awesomeness that was going to happen on the dance floor. And in case that wasn't enough, we practiced with most of our wedding party in the hotel suite the night before the wedding.

And then we rocked the hell out of it. ;)


We waltzed around the dance floor long enough to prove we are much better dancers than Frederick and Mary, when our wedding party started moving in on us (followed by directions from the DJ to the rest of the crowd to take "one giant step forward").


This couldn't have been more fun, and it left us in a great position to be able to see and talk to many of our guests before dinner. Win!

As the cocktail hour wound down, the DJ announced that dinner would be served soon and that everyone should find their seats. As salads were passed, Papa Spaniel took the opportunity to speak.

(I love my dad :)
After dinner (which was delicious), we heard from Mr. Spaniel's Best Man and both of our brothers.


I can't wait for our wedding video so that I can remember all of what was said! But I do remember that we laughed, I cried, and have teased Mr. Spaniel mercilessly and endlessly following his brother's mini-roast:

My brother Mr. Spaniel is, and has always been, a careful chooser... If you have ever been to a restaurant with Mr. Spaniel, you know what I'm talking about. That's because Mr. Spaniel isn't a person that can be characterized as a quick orderer, or an average-speed orderer, or even a slow orderer. Mr. Spaniel falls into the category of the slowest orderers that have ever lived.

(It is 100% true.)


Cheers!

All photos by the superb Meg Perotti and Regis Photography.

Miss anything?
The Spaniels Are Married!
Watching Paint Dry
Vendor FAIL
Putting Our Faces On
Something New
Boutonnieres and Tuxedos
Sneaky Spaniel: The First Look
Something Borrowed, Something Blue
Hey Laaadies! (The Wedding Party)
Signing Our Lives Away
Marriage Is a Process...ion
We've Only Just Begun (The Ceremony)
Organized Chaos
All Kinds of Pretty and One Big Fat Ugly
(This Will Be Our) Budget Recap Post

This Will Be Our... Budget Recap Post

Way back when I was a wee 'bee, I promised I'd share my final budget numbers at the end. I don't want to say good-bye on a budget post, though, so you're stuck with me through a few more recaps. :)

Yes, that's what you're stuck with (guest photo)
So without further ado...

Category	Budget	Actual
Ceremony (location fee, officiant)	$400	$150
Reception (venue rental, food and service, beverages and bartenders, cake and cutting fee)	$17,000	$24,000
Bride's attire and accessories (including alterations, hair and make-up)	$2,000	$1,750
Groom's tux and accessories	$250	$0
Flowers and décor (bouquets, boutonnieres, corsages, ceremony decorations, reception decorations and centerpieces)	$2,000	$1,015
Music (ceremony and reception musicians)	$2,000	$1,100
Photography	$3,000	$3,200
Stationery	$750	$750
Wedding rings	$2,000	$1,440
Gifts (bridesmaids, groomsmen, parents)	$600	$660
Videographer	---	$1,100
Day-of Coordinator	---	$350
Transportation	---	$125
Ketubah	---	$620
Total	$30,000	$35,600

Ouch. So, it's pretty obvious where we got into trouble: when we put our budget together, way back in the long ago days of 2008, we had assurances from our family that the guest list would not exceed 150, that we could plan on 130 people celebrating with us. In the end, we had a guest list of a whopping 205 people, and put on a party for 162. Add in a few extras, like upgraded chairs and passed appetizers, and you can kiss your budget good-bye! The lesson of the day is: get the list from your parents EARLY, and don't trust them when they just give you a number! They almost certainly have an additional 50 guests up their sleeves. ;)

I didn't try the prosciutto, but everything else was delicious!
Would it have been such a party if the room weren't so full?
I'm just going to go ahead and say that, in the main, there is very little we could have done differently without the benefit of hindsight. Every new thing we thought of (video, DOC, ketubah, a ride home at the end of the night), we took out of somewhere else in the budget—I wore won and low-cost accessories, we got a free rental on Mr. Spaniel's tuxedo from the Men's Wearhouse, chose a hotel that would give us a free suite for reserving a large block, and hired a freelance florist instead of an established shop, for example. We also took every precaution we could think of on the reception costs by hammering out our guest list early. Unfortunately, just because Mr. Spaniel and I were all wedding all the time does't mean our parents were, and I guess a year beforehand they did not have their wedding caps firmly on their heads... leading to last minute invites that came too late to have chosen a less expensive venue after all!

Admittedly, if this were all coming out of my own pocket, I would have put my foot down more firmly on the last-minute guests. Nearly 20% over budget is no joke. But our parents thought inviting more of their friends was worth it, and no one at our wedding was a stranger. Mr. Spaniel and I spent only what we could afford, and no one went into any debt for our wedding.

And since I can't think of a better way to close this post...


Meh.

All photos by the wonderful Meg Perotti, unless otherwise noted.

Miss anything?
The Spaniels Are Married!
Watching Paint Dry
Vendor FAIL
Putting Our Faces On
Something New
Boutonnieres and Tuxedos
Sneaky Spaniel: The First Look
Something Borrowed, Something Blue
Hey Laaadies! (The Wedding Party)
Signing Our Lives Away
Marriage Is a Process...ion
We've Only Just Begun (The Ceremony)
Organized Chaos
All Kinds of Pretty and One Big Fat Ugly

This Will Be Our Year: All Kinds of Pretty and One Big Fat Ugly

I would like to take full credit for how beautiful the dining room looked, but I can't—we picked Calamigos Ranch because we wanted something that was nearly finished already, and it was beautiful before we added a thing.


Aside from the centerpieces and menus, I didn't really bring much—a couple of chair signs for me and Mr. Spaniel because I had leftover paper and ribbon, and none for anyone else because I didn't have leftover time.


But it's not real life if something doesn't look just plain-out ridiculously awful, somewhere. Behold, the Hideous "Henna" Cake!


Do you remember my inspiration cake? No? I'll show it to you.

(source)
And just in case math is not your strong suit...


You can tell that whoever was working on the cake was looking at the inspiration picture. What you can't tell is what they were thinking. Or why they didn't start over when they got those giant blobs of fudge smeared across the bottom tier.

I have to say, I thought it was pretty funny when I saw it. But I also wish I would have known just how bad it was going to look, so I could have saved the money on a "pretty wedding cake" and put together a much prettier and more cost-effective cake buffet instead. At least it tasted good!

All photos by the magical Meg Perotti, unless otherwise noted.

Miss anything?
The Spaniels Are Married!
Watching Paint Dry
Vendor FAIL
Putting Our Faces On
Something New
Boutonnieres and Tuxedos
Sneaky Spaniel: The First Look
Something Borrowed, Something Blue
Hey Laaadies! (The Wedding Party)
Signing Our Lives Away
Marriage Is a Process...ion
We've Only Just Begun (The Ceremony)
Organized Chaos

This Will Be Our Year: Organized Chaos

After the ceremony, the cocktail hour began. Mr. Spaniel and I didn't want to miss our entire cocktail hour with our guests, and had planned our entrance to the reception area and first dance for only fifteen minutes in as a result. While we waited for our cue, Mr. Spaniel and I took a few minutes to sit and reflect on the huge step we had just taken.


Just kidding. We sat and took directions from about seven different photographers.

Mr. Spaniel points out one camera, while looking at another (guest photo)
I don't actually remember what this face was for, but I sure look flustered! (guest photo)
I didn't have much time to stress, though. The bridesmaids fixed my bustle, Mama Spaniel fixed my lipstick, and then we were ready waltz into the reception area!

In a parallel universe—that is, out front on the patio where the cocktail hour was starting—the venue staff was serving champagne and strawberries to our guests.


I love how relaxed and happy everyone looks in these close shots... but back up a little, and you can see that it was a madhouse!

(guest photos)
All photos by the talented Meg Perotti, unless otherwise noted.

Miss anything?
The Spaniels Are Married!
Watching Paint Dry
Vendor FAIL
Putting Our Faces On
Something New
Boutonnieres and Tuxedos
Sneaky Spaniel: The First Look
Something Borrowed, Something Blue
Hey Laaadies! (The Wedding Party)
Signing Our Lives Away
Marriage Is a Process...ion
We've Only Just Begun (The Ceremony)