Thoughts about life, gadgets, and design
Apple Votive Candles
I’m always coming across things I love and gotta have, but most of all don’t want to forget! Thanks to a trusty coworker, she turned me on to Tumblr. Tumblr is a place that I’m using to dump all the photos, links, and blogs that I come across for wedding inspiration. Most of it is fall-inspired wedding ideas. Go on, have a look at my ‘tumblelog.’ Have any fun wedding or party ideas you want to share? I’m all ears!
For the past several weekends, my fiance and I ventured around my hometown in Delaware in search of the perfect place to have our wedding reception.
If anything, I’ve come out of this experience with one strong bit of advice for brides-to-be around the globe: it’s important to choose a place that represents the couple — not a place that the parents insist upon booking because they like it.
As it turns out, the place my well-meaning mother thought was me, was my definition of “a nursing home with motel 6 paintings.” Pretty strong words I know (When that happened, I coined myself “Bridezilla” — oh the horror!), but I honestly couldn’t picture us getting married there. In total, we visited four very different venues, which may seem like too few, but it was all we truly needed to make a decision. Without further ado, here’s the breakdown of each type of venue:
This place was the very first place we visited. I initially thought I had no real preference of a wedding venue, but when I saw this place, I quickly learned that this was not the one for us. This particular venue helped me to realize that I wanted a large open space where guests could walk around and mingle, not a series of small rooms that would force guests in a confined area with no where to move. Appearance-wise, it was an old and rustic building nestled in a quaint part of town, which sounds nice, but after surveying the age of the building, we realized that there were no elevators, proving to be an accessible nightmare to our older guests in attendance. In addition, the carpets, drapery, and furniture were very dated and simply not what a modern couple would like. As mentioned, it is “old elegance.” Right for someone else, but for us, we knew we had to move on.
This was the second place we visited, and was the opposite of the first place in every way imaginable. With gold-embossed high-vaulted ceilings and crystal chandeliers, this venue was definitely as classy as they come. With every “ooh” and “ahh” we encountered, it simply just didn’t feel like us. We are not showy, over-the-top type people, so having a wedding reception here would have made us feel out of our element. Not to mention, our guests probably would have “ooh-ed” and “ahh-ed” more over the decor of the actual place than the event itself. Not worth competing with, especially since we plan to have a wedding that incorporates small and personalized details that represent us or those close to us.
After striking out with the first two, we really didn’t know what to expect, except that this next place had to fall somewhere between the two extremes. And you know what? It sure did. When we walked into the country club, we just felt something click. The main room was a large and spacious ballroom with a balcony along one wall, appropriate for throwing a bridal bouquet. The opposite wall was lined with french doors that opened into a fully glass enclosed atrium with hanging crystal chandeliers. The curtains were very modern and overall, it was absolutely exquisite. We truly thought this was it, but …no.
We ended up choosing the last place we had visited, which was my father’s pick all along. We had initally scratched it off the list after we heard that it had a $26,000 minimum. But, with golf course views, a water fountain, floor-to-ceiling windows, and one of the state’s best chefs, this was truly the one for us. What really got us, was that we were able to get it for a fraction of the price because we chose a Sunday. Sunday of Columbus Day weekend to be exact. That way most of our guests still have Monday off and out-of-town guests won’t have to take Friday off for the rehearsal dinner. Most of all, this was the one where we saw ourselves and our guests enjoying their evening the most.
Since I’m in the beginning stages of planning a wedding, I’ve started to visualize what might be nice for our special day. Here’s what I call a wedding mood board. I’m open to any bits of advice you may have for fall weddings.
Wedding Mood Board, originally uploaded by Refined Designer.
Well, we’ve made a decision. We’re getting married in fall of 2010, rather than 2009. Being a web designer, of course I’ve already thought up a wedding website idea! I created a layout and color scheme that encompasses fall colors. What are your thoughts of the proposed website idea? What kind of navigation links do you think are most important on a wedding website? Comments are welcome!
Welp, it’s true. I recently got engaged over Memorial Day weekend. Needless to say, I am SO thrilled and cannot wait to be married to the love of my life. Luckily he tells me the same… 
Here’s a little food for thought. We’re both in agreement that we want a fall wedding, however here’s where we differ: I want a fall 2009 wedding, he wants a fall 2010 wedding. From my perspective, I think why not do it this fall instead of next fall, which feels like an enternity away? Sure, I know I should enjoy an engagement and take my time with the planning, because I know it sneaks up on brides-to-be. His perspective is he wants a little more time to enjoy the engagement, and start planning for the next phase of our lives as in financially supporting a family with children, a home, etc. While I absolutely respect this way of thinking (and love & appreciate it), we’re a team, so he’s not alone in anything and neither am I. Of course, being two independent people, that will be somewhat of a test as we progress toward marriage. With all this said, my instinct tells me I should honor my fiance’s wishes and wait to get married until next fall. Your thoughts?
Darren LeBlanc & his 2 year-old daughter Olivia
Are you or someone you know affected by an illness?
A short while ago, I wrote a post about the Heartwarming Story of Misty LeBlanc, a DivineCaroline.com award-winning blog written by Darren LeBlanc. For those of you who don’t know, Darren kept a blog to keep family and friends apprised of his wife, Misty’s, battle with cancer. As time went on, he attracted more and more followers, but just when Misty’s prognosis was starting to look better in the Fall of 2008, she took a turn for the worse. She left behind a greiving family: a precious 2 year-old daughter and a husband unsure how to keep her memory alive. Despite Misty’s passing, Darren continues to tell his family’s story:
“Hey, I’m Darren. I recently lost my wife Misty to brain cancer. The journey has been life changing for me, my family and for many of the thousands of daily readers of this site. Today, I’m living in Long Branch NJ with my daughter and doing my best to capture here the story that God is still writing. Whether or not you believe in God, I hope that you join the family here as we all struggle with understanding what faith really is and whether or not God is still relevant in 2009.”
You would think he’d stop there. However, a mere eight months after her passing, Darren has turned around and launched Anthem of Hope, an organization dedicated to bringing hope and courage to those affected by illness. In their mission, they state:
“We believe faith is the key component in the transformation from despair to hope; the movement from a dark place to one of joy. Our goal is to support patients, family and friends by creating resources to facilitate the growth of faith and hope in the midst of trials.”
I commend Darren on using his story to help start an organization that provides the necessary tools to those in emotional and spiritual need during a time of illness. To check out his website, visit http://www.AnthemOfHope.com.
Anthem of Hope Website
Update: Darren’s story has been picked up by several local papers, as featured in this article: “In dark time, husband finds the ‘availability of hope.”
After scouring the Internet for some of the most insane chocolate creations, here are the ten most outrageous chocolates:
Mo's Bacon Bar
Aerated Chocolate
Chocolate Cheeseburger
Exotic Truffle Collection. I actually had the chance to try each of these and they were to die for. Wasabi was my favorite.
Germ-infested Chocolate Billboard
Chocolate toothpaste actually isn't horrible for you. Click the image to view the Tulane study about cocoa powder.
German Chocolate Sauerkraut Cake
The $250 dollar chocolate truffle
The $25,000 chocolate sundae
And yes, an entire fashion show in chocolate
With the creation of this Hallmark holiday, our American culture has generally come to terms that it’s important to celebrate this holiday with or without a loved one. Preferably with, right? Correct me if I’m wrong, but the ultimate Valentine’s Day includes the following:
Well, despite having the love of my life, this year, the two of us have decided not to partake in any of these activities. It’s a concept I haven’t considered before until now, but I think it’s worth a shot. After a long discussion last night about the significance of the holiday, it makes sense that a couple’s love should be celebrated all year long. I suppose I’m a little bummed that we won’t be doing anything on February 14th, but I am willing to compromise. His argument is that Valentine’s Day forces pressure on the man to drop a good chunk of his paycheck on marked-up presents and a full-course meal out at a fancy restaurant. My argument is, why not take the time to be extra romantic? It’s fun to look forward to something out of the ordinary. I think it’s the spice of life. His take? It’s a pseudo-love holiday. It imposes the unreal on the real.
Want to show your love? Act on it when it’s least expected. Not when society tells you to do so.
What’s your take on Valentine’s Day? Love it or hate it? Or, are you like me, where you could go either way?
Michelle and Barack Obama Dancing
Inauguration Ball Goers Capture the Moment
Citizens of Kenya Watching Obama Taking Oath
See the entire collection at: The Inauguration of President Barack Obama – The Big Picture – Boston.com
Today I was reminded of a blog I came across back in September. This is no ordinary blog. This blog is written by Darren, who lost his wife Misty to brain cancer in September. After reading through many of his posts, I found my eyes welling with tears. Never have I ever read a blog that was so real and profound. Darren has touched my heart with his story. You may find his words touching as well.
To read his blog, go to http://www.leblanclife.com/. The post that captivated me the most is Misty’s last picture, which I found in September, but can’t seem to find now. I commend Darren for having the courage to spill his life story onto “paper” for the world to see. While I debated if it was appropriate to blog about this, I feel that he is doing so to spread awareness about brain cancer as well as to encourage others to realize just how precious life really is.
To donate to the Anthem of Hope project, an organization devoted to those facing illness, please click here.
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