Bridal Shower

She Said:

My Bridal Shower was on Sunday, August 20th. It was truly amazing! I was so excited to have so many friends and family join the event. We played several games, including the "who knows the couple the best" game. I had a feeling a friend from college would end up winning that one since Joe and I met in college and where half of our memories come from. My friend Cara was the lucky winner- you go Cara! Also, we did the Toilet Paper Bride game; where you dress up "your bride" of the group with toilet paper. That's always my favorite when I go to bridal showers so we had to do it!! My sister, Amy, with the help of my mom, did such a wonderful job decorating and hosting. She is very creative and even made game cards and hershey candy bar covers especially with Joe and I on them! I can't thank them enough for such a beautiful party. It was like nothing I have ever experienced before. By the end of the day I finally understood why women have showers; I felt so much support from everyone for my marriage to Joe. This just makes me more and more excited for the wedding day.... coming soon!!

My mom showing off my new nephew to family members.

A table with family members.

Opening gifts!

Beautiful decor by Amy.

"Toliet Paper Bride"

Thanks to Cara and Amber for your help!!

IMPORTANT WEDDING MAP CHANGE

IMPORTANT: Map enclosed in wedding invitation is INCORRECT.

PLEASE USE ADDRESS ON ACTUAL INVITATION, OR USE GOOGLE MAP LINK BELOW.

We will be departing from HORNBLOWER DOCK, not Adventures at Sea.


1) Parking and departure will be at 2431 West Pacific Coast Hwy. Guests will park in the lot, and if there is overflow, parking attendants will direct you to the overflow lots.
Below is a link to a google map.
http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&q=2431%20W.%20Coast%20Hwy%20ca&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wl

2) Parking in the lot is $8.00 so you may want to car pool and bring cash.

3) Boarding for the boat begins at 5:30pm but getting there earlier is recommended because it is summer time and the beach area can experience traffic delays. The Boat will leave at 6:00pm sharp, with or with out you. If you know of some one who tends to be late, please remind them of this.

PLEASE DO NOT HESISTATE TO CALL WITH QUESTIONS, EVEN ON THE WEDDING DAY, ally's cell number is 562-458-7988, and amy (sister) will be answering the phone the day of the wedding to answer any and all questions.

Endless Dreams & Local Hotels

WHAT TO LOOK FORWARD TO:
here is a little description of the boat from the brochure:

"Endless Dreams represents the pinnacle of yacht charter design: elegance, space, and luxury. Designed and built exclusively for Adventures at Sea and launched in November, 2002, the Endless Dreams provides the ultimate in large yacht chartering. U.S. Coast Guard certified for 468 passengers with specialty features like leather couches, plasma television screens, and an aquarium, Endless Dreams was built to impress. Endless Dreams’ Dining Deck boasts 3000 square feet of space and style. Rich wood tones, mocha carpeting, and granite bars are offset by high ceilings and surrounded by large picture windows. A raised platform behind the bar can be used for buffets, head tables, or even a large band. Endless Dreams’ Entertainment Deck is highlighted by leather couches, huge picture windows, a rich mahogany dance floor, and an open rear deck reminiscent of a patio dining area with balcony. The bow and Sky Deck, above, are perfect for open-air mingling, ocean-spectator viewing, and relaxation."

HOTEL INFORMATION: There are a lot of hotels in the area, but here are a few.

Marriott Newport Beach Bayview
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/npbst-newport-beach-marriott-bayview/
Phone: 1-949-854-4500 500
Bayview CircleNewport Beach, CA 92660

Holiday Inn Express Newport http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/h/d/ex/1/en/hotel/jwanb;jsessionid=UY2XO3SS5PDSSCTGWAISHPQKM0YBEIY4?_requestid=415594
Phone: 1-949-722-2999 2300
W. Coast Highway Newport Beach, CA 92663

Hyatt Regency Newport Beach
http://newportbeach.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/index.jsp
Phone: 1 949 729 1234 1107
Jamboree Road Newport Beach, CA 92660

Hope this helps!
Please leave a comment if you think we forgot to include something. Thanks

Getting close to the BIG day!

Hello every one… we are officially on the count down. We have 33 days left! Time is definitely going by very quickly!
Last weekend I was a groomsman in Jason and Krista’s wedding. Their wedding was at the Summit House in Fullerton. Their wedding was absolutely amazing and I hope ours turns out as nice, which I am sure it will. The point of telling this is while I was standing up there supporting Jason and Krista as they start a new chapter of their lives, I kept picturing Allyson and I up there in front of the minister. It was awesome because not only was I ecstatic for Jason and Krista but I can’t wait until it’s our turn. I have to say, I am so ready to be married!

As crazy as it may sound, Allyson and I actually almost got married last month. We went down to the Santa Ana Court House to get our marriage certificate, and that’s when it happened Allyson looked at me and said lets just get married right now! She said we didn’t have to tell any one and we would just have a big party on the boat. It was tempting but I just couldn’t do it. Our parents, (Her FATHER) I don’t think would appreciate it very much. We did however have a bit of a laugh, we took a few pictures of us under the Civil Wedding Ceremonies sign at the court house and sent it to our families. It seems nothing amuses Allyson more than raising her father’s blood pressure a few points. Don’t worry everyone, when we get married on the boat it will be for the first time!

So as I was saying in my last post that there would be some last minute items to address… well I got handed an official list today at lunch. Allyson picked me up at work so we could meet our wedding planner and make the final payment on the boat. We touched on a few last items like seating arrangements, who will be allowed on the boat before the official boarding time and things of this nature. After we got done cutting the check, we decided to go out to lunch. Allyson had been hinting that she had a list of things that still needed to be done before the wedding but I was not ready for the 3 pager she handed me. Items were broken down in to very specific to do’s and numbered. 1-25 some even had sub categories. The list was very well organized but more than I was expecting. In fact it would be kind of funny if I posted the list. Then you all could see how organized she really is. After a minor squabble about wedding songs we split the list and went over the due dates. I think Allyson is feeling better now that she knows we are on the same page. No pun intended. Hopefully we will get all the items checked off and have at least a week of no wedding stuff a week before the big day. That’s the goal at least.
Hopefully Allyson will be able to write a little bit but she has a really busy next few weeks. On top of THE to do list she has her wedding shower, her sisters baby shower and a bachelorette party to attend.

Goodness its been a long time since we have posted to our blog. Basically it has a combination of life, and us getting ready for the wedding. Since the last post we have been busy! We finalized just about everything.
We went cake tasting about a month ago. It turned out to be much more fun than expected. We saw and picked out the design in less than 15 minutes, another 5 minutes was needed for us to taste and actually agree on which ones we liked. They were all great but the Bavarian chocolate got a double thumbs up from us. We ended up finishing the whole process so quickly that the lady said we just set a record at the store. We joked with her saying that maybe we should have taken longer and tryed everything twice. She laughed and sent us home with a box of samples just for fun, which was very nice of her. We took them home and shared them with Jodie and Brandon. We have also finished registering, booked our honey moon, fought with our florist and managed to have a pretty good time doing it all.

By now we have to be down to our last few items I can't imagine there being much more to do. Plus I don't think I could take it. We have to meet with the DJ, pick out tuxes and mail out our invitations. I am sure we are totally missing a few items and they will be painfully obvious as we get even closer. I am not looking forward to all the last minute stuff. Thank god for Allyson because she will keep the last minute stuff to a minimum. She is really good about getting stuff done early.

As for the time line... I have to admit. I am starting to panic a bit. I officiated Jodie and Brandon’s wedding on May 10th and I could not believe how fast it got here. I was shocked at how fast the last 2 months before a wedding actually go. Its like, you blink, and there you are up at the alter. As of last weekend it is now becoming real. My room mates moved out and have taken all of the furniture with them. I didn’t realize that the only stuff I own is in my room and the garage. I guess this is better this way Allyson and I can start are life together fresh.

Food tasting

He said

Food tasting Going for the food tasting was a pleasant way to spend a Saturday. Unfortunately against Allyson advice I made a large Saturday morning breakfast and proceeded to stuff my face and get uncomfortably full at 10:30 am. We were scheduled to have our food tasting at noon. This did not leave enough time for proper digestion. I was just going to have to man up and eat again. Ally and I met our coordinator down at the docs on Mojo another boat in the fleet. Mojo is a much smaller craft than Endless Dreams but is still quite nice. Once aboard we were greeted by a semi formally set table with bottles of water and glasses of ice. We started off with assortment of appetizers. My eyes were much bigger than our stomach I could only take one bite of everything it was SO Good. Next came the salads I was totally impressed we chose the spinach. After that we were served 2 fish dishes and 2 beef dishes, not little samples but full on portions. The Mahi mahi and the tri tip got our votes as the favorite. But the other two were a close second… There was no way to finish all the food that was put in front of us so we asked to take it home... a bit tacky I'm sure but I couldn't have them throw away such good food. If the actual food the day of the wedding is as good as what we tasted everyone is in for a real treat! During the tasting we also got to pick out the layout of the life ring that will be hung at the back of the boat (kind of fun). We also started to finalize the linens that will be used.

It is experiences like this one that reminded me that wedding planning is sometimes fun. Actually a lot of fun!

She Said

So far the most fun part of the wedding process!! Anything that has to do with trying food - I knew I'd like! We arrived last Saturday to the docks in Newport Beach to aboard MOJO, a smaller yacht, with all the amenities of a house. It was very lovely. A table was set, linens and all, just for our private food tasting. I felt like royalty! Joe and I chatted with our wedding coordinator over linens for the reception while the food was being made. Then - the feast began! Starting with appetizers through to the main course. And let me just tell you, everything was delicious! I never tasted food for a wedding prepared so well. Let's just hope they can re-create such mastery on a large proportion level. It was really nice to see that Joe and I were agreeing on everything, too. We liked (the best) all the same dishes and sides. This made things so much easier in my opinion. Our menu options will be between choosing from a Mahi Mahi dish or Tri Tip; both are FABULOUS! I am just so excited, the food tasting really made it feel like the wedding is approaching soon. It was so funny, Joe and I left MOJO holding hands and giggly - he even opened the car door for me!! We just laughed at what a great mood it put us in.

Ring Pillow