Boo!

Happy Halloween! Enjoy the new, Halloween inspired, Imeem playlist! Can't say for sure if any of these songs will be covered come wedding day but I'm pretty sure an artist or two will. Any guesses? Who's bad??


And here's a pick of the pumpkin that was left on our front stoop - not that we have a stoop...





















I wonder if Jenoa will ever create different Picassa web albums?

In Honor Of All Hallow's Eve and All Things Black

As you probably know, Coco would do just about anything to get married in a black dress holding black flowers. Alas, her mother wouldn't hear of it.

So, in honor of her affinity for black gowns and fauna AND in honor of the Celts that begin celebrating Samhain and All Hallow's Eve (which eventually became Halloween), I've come upon a dark tale of a couple that has decided to marry on a blessed holiday while playing homage to the awesomeness that are the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy and the “Dungeons and Dragons” role-playing game. Can you say Elvira meets King Arthur's court?? Weird is an understatement.

Read more about it here.

ps...how on earth does someone really name their child 'Faith Charity'?

pps...oh, and for the record, she's come so far as to 1) look at the Cowboys schedule to see what week they have a BYE and 2) actually know what a BYE is. Way to go, Coco!

Just as an FYI

We've gotten some really great feedback regarding our Save the Date cards! We just wanted to let the world know that our pal G$ was the one behind the lens. To see more of his work, you can either come over to our apartment (I think we represent pretty well) or go to http://embeddedinbrooklyn.my-expressions.com/index.html.

* Please note that I forgot how to do that link thingy and Brian is ignoring my plea for help. =)

Another Thing To Check Off The List

This past Sunday, while Big A and I (nervously) watched the Cowboys-Pats game, Coco and her mom had an appointment to see another florist (our 2nd).

Pedestals was suggested to us by a couple of now newly-weds. Obviously I can't speak to the details of the what had gone down -I obviously didn't listen well enough when they returned just before halftime - but 1) they quoted us a much better price than Colonial and 2) Coco L-O-V-E-D the floral coordinator, Vito.

Stack the characteristics I have now omitted due to a certain someone's demands (married men, I'm already losing, aren't I?) on top (just imagine the pun intended) of a personality that LOVES designing with flowers and we've got another marriage, of sorts. All kidding aside it screams of a perfect match. (Kidding aside?? What kidding??) He loved her (our) vision and is very excited to work with us. As are we. We've heard he only gets the best reviews.

Bring it on, Vito.

ps...because I can no longer say/write what I want on this blog, I may stop saying/writing. Or at least leave it up to her.

pps...Disclosure: If I have selected your skills for my wedding, no biases exist no matter what may or may not be written about you. Unless you're a Yankee fan, of course.

ppps...IM demanding removal of post:

loveforfire15: nooo no nooo
loveforfire15: it's funny and you're a great writer but if he reads it i don't want him to be offended
loveforfire15: seriously, I love you but the wedding may be off if you don't remove it
BtotheMC: what. you know there's no mal intent on my part..
loveforfire15: about the gay and the growing up gotti
loveforfire15: it's a great post but i dont' want to offend him in any way in case he reads the blog as it's in my email. I'm not sure why I care so much since no one really reads it save 3 maybe 4 people. and you're harmless.
BtotheMC: not picking up [she was calling me at work]
loveforfire15: brian i'm serious, i may call the whole thing off.
loveforfire15: it's a little on the mean side although you don't have a mean bone in your body - except when i need bugs squished
BtotheMC: it is? its not meant to be. i love that show. i'm pro gay. i love hot, italian sausage when you put it in with the meatballs.
loveforfire15: and i really don't think it's necessary to bring in what he looks like
BtotheMC: i'll try and fix it so it doesn't come across like you say. thats not my intent.
loveforfire15: you are making fun of his appearance although i really know you're not
loveforfire15: which isn't nice
loveforfire15: please fix about the gay and the spikey mikey and growing up gotti
BtotheMC: can i leave the picture?
loveforfire15: nooooo
loveforfire15: pretty please no - you'll get good lovin' if you take it down
loveforfire15: i wouldn't want to read anything like that about myself although i'm not sure what you say about me that is negative
BtotheMC: just so we are clear it was never meant to be mean

pppps...Some of Coco's IM responses have been doctored. Blame it on me.

The Honeymoon - An Addendum

As discussed, we decided to front load our honeymoon with 2 nights in Rome. Having never been before, Coco stressed staying near the Trevi fountain (pictured) and the Spanish Steps; "I'd like to be near it all."

I couldn't locate a Comfort Inn on that side of the Atlantic, so after a heated discussion we've opted for the Hotel di Russie. Sweet.

Dude.

Sweet.

Dude.

A Time To Celebrate

Happy Second-Wedding Anniversary to G & E!!

ps..they're in our wedding party.

The Dress

Yesterday's missions was accomplished - The Dress was procured - not that I have any idea what it looks like....but it supposed to be that way, no?! For that may wish to read about the final decisions, she may not divulge all of the details publicly. Alas, you may be in my boat - having to wait until our wedding day. Sorry.

STDs

Save The Dates, silly. Get your mind out of the gutter.

We've been patiently waiting to get them so Coco can personally, hand address each one - yeah, right!! Believe it if you can but her penmanship is WORSE than mine. Perhaps I'll just have them printed up at work.

She was mumbling something about calligraphy stencils - say what?!

S-L-O-W

With things as slow as they are, I've only got the following to report:

1) I'm hoping to accompany Coco to our next floral shop visit this Sunday (Pedestals in Garden City) but it doesn't look likely - silly girl scheduled it at 3pm on the Sunday the 'Boys play the Pats.

2) This Saturday will mark the second Wedding Dress day. Only two - whodathunk.

3) We're tossing around what hotel to stay at in Rome on the front side of the cruise. Have you been? Where should we stay in? What's a must to see (since I've never been)?

4) Imagine if it's this warm come next year?!?

5) There's got to be more - there has to be.....

More Of The New Addition To The McNamara Clan

While Seannie is off training and Jenoa politely doesn't return our calls, I thought I'd post their web album with beaucoup pix of lil Ava Shae.

Enjoy!!

Rumor has it they're still trying to catch up on their sleep. The pictures do a nice job detailing their attempts.

This Is The Worst...

...day ever to be a Mets fan.
Ever.

Last year wasn't even this bad.

The Honeymoon

Finally.
At last.
Conclusively.
Its settled.
Irrevocably - well at least until October 1.

The honeymoon is finalized.

I'm not really sure why we didn't explore this option earlier in The Honeymoon Game but I'm elated to know that most of the plan is in place. We're thinking Rome, Naples, Athens, Rhodes, Alexandria, Mykonos, Capri, Cyprus and Ephesus (Turkey). 12 days on the eastern Meditterranean sounds sweet doesn't it?! I've never done the cruise thing before but I've only read great things about the ports of call, the ship, you name it...

Read more about it here!

Prelude To A Wedding Dinner

Part of the package that The Carlyle offers once you go to contract with them for the big she-bang, is to be invited back for dinner at The Oak Room - on them - as a means to sample the menu. Friday night we did a whole 'o sampling.

While not every item on the menu will be available for us to select and include during the wedding, our waiter notified us of such before ordering. He, I think his name was Alex, was very helpful in detailing any variations in how plates might be served on the wedding side of the house.

For appetizers, we started with crab cakes, calamari, stuffed artichoke hearts, a medley of salads (ceasar, blue cheese, and some bacon bean concoction), and my favorite, blue cheese batter shrimp. De-lish.

Entrees included filet mignon, mahi mahi, baby lamb chops, a greek chicken cutlet, and pasta.

Dessert included an assortment of chocolate molten something, brandied bananas, and an ice cream dish. All very good on the eye and the palate.

Unfortunately, I can't tell you what will make the wedding day menu because I'm being threatening by Coco. (Bad, Coco, bad. Now you must be punished ;) Besides, I would think that the menu might evolve between now and then. Let's just hope the menu selection process is easier than choosing a spot to honeymoon. BTW, I think we're going to cruise the eastern Mediterranean. S.W.E.E.T.

I should note that the house could do a better job of noting the meal comps on the reciept. While they were clear in what was being comped, you had no idea what the amount of each comp was. Big A was clearly befuddled when trying to tip the waiter. Big A is a big fan of service and wanted to make sure the waiter received his grat on top of the freebies.

Breaking News!!!!

Not only is it one year to the day of our wedding but it's also the day that Sean and Jenoa have brought their baby girl into this world. Ava Shae weighing in at 7 lbs 4 oz, 21", was born at 7:46 am. Mother is out cold sleeping and Ava Shae keeps blinking those baby blond eye lashes at her dad. Awesome news. Just awesome.

Rumor has it her eyes are blue. Pictures to follow when available.

Proud parents & little Ava*




*Thanks to Jenoa's mom Vicki Potter (not relation to Harry) for the photos.

Man, oh, man....

What's with planes crashing in Thailand??!

Our honeymoon is now completely on the rocks. You should see Coco scrambling...

Why am I not scrambling, you ask??

Because I would be just as happy poolside at the Motel 8 on Country Road 52 in Omaha, Nebraska. You know the one a 1/4 mile down from the Nelson Pig Farm & Slaughterhouse. Mmmm - bacon.

Dress Shopping - Take One

Dress Shoppping. It was certainly an experience and there are some U-G-L-Y bridal gowns out there, that's for sure. So many beads, so little time. Since we had a kick ass night out on Friday with G & E, 8 am definitely came early. I gave myself a pep talk and the minute I heard my stomach grumbling for some food, I knew I'd make it through the day sans hangover.

I met my mom and Lames at 9:30 am at Kleinfelds. The store is on 20th street in Manhattan. We waited about 15 minutes in the lobby (BTW - its by appointment only) before we were matched up with our "consultant". The only problem - I would have killed for something to drink - anything to drink. Anything. A.N.Y.T.H.I.N.G. I wish I was offered water or coffee or iced tea or iced coffee - just SOMETHING while we waited. Trying on dresses is tiring and us brides-to-be need to keep up our energy level, people!

Our consultant, Barbara, came out to greet us and promptly escorted us to her dressing room; it was labeled as such - "Barbara's Dressing Room". I have heard mixed opinions about Kleinfelds from various brides-to-be saying that the consultants were, mostly, difficult to work with. This was anything but the case. Barbara was perfectly lovely. She listened ever so patiently while I gave her my list of requirements for the gown of my dreams:

1. Nothing too poofy (read: poofy = bad)
2. Nothing that looked like The Bedazzler had something to do with the design and manufacturing process.
3. No Tulle. Absolutely. No. Tulle.
4. No Bunching. I like the occasional frech croissant but I don't want to look like a french pastry.
5. Simple and elegant is key. (read: simple and elegant = good)
6. A-line or Trumpet cuts look best on me as I have childbearing hips (read: child-bearing = good; the groom-to-be says so.)
7. Mermaid cut is bad as are skin tight dresses.

I didn't think my list of demands was anything too outrageous and thankfully, neither did Barbara. She had sent us into "the racks" where there were hundreds upon hundreds of dresses to choose from. Barbara said to grab 5 and bring them back to the room while she pulled a few dresses that she thought I might like. I felt like I had walked into Macy's in Herald Square. Completely overwhelmed, I felt my first jolt of panic. Thankfully, mom expected as much and went to right to work grabbing armfuls of dress and mumbling something that sounded like; "Stefania, sweetie, calm down. This is so exciting! Breath, sweetie, breath." Lamey did the same - without the mumbling of course - and I even started to get on the action. After finding about 8 or so, I decided it was time to start trying them on.

Kleinfelds, thankfully, supplies all brides-to-be with a strapless/backless bra to wear while trying on dresses. Barbara, thankfully, reminded me to NOT go out and buy any undergarments until after my first fitting. AS I found out, most stores tell you exactly what you should purchase. Also, practically every dress I tried on was a size 10 which meant they had to be clipped in the back to fit my hopefully-soon-to-be-size-4-but-still-a-size-6-figure.

I started trying on a few dresses but I wasn't getting that "holy crap this is THE dress" feeling. Uh-oh. Lamey was cute; while she liked every dress she wasn't exactly thrilled to the core about any of them. Barbara was a real trooper and kept at it, leaving me every so often to pull another dress off "the racks". Like a golden (and wonderfully gay) ray of sunshine, Randy knocked on my door. Randy is the Fashion Director at Kleinfelds and absolutely loves his job, and I, absolutely love him. He started pulling dresses for me to try on as well. He has vision. Every time I remotely semi-loved a dress, I took a walk, put on the matching veil and shoes and took a walk down the aisle, err I mean, hallway. He offered his best criticism and gave the proverbial thumbs up or thumbs down.

Finally, nearing the end of my appointment that just happened to run 30 minutes over, I put on a dress by Christos; a dress that gave me my first "holy crap - this is the dress" feeling. But alas, I almost started to cry, my mom had goose bumps and I thought this was it. Well - almost. To me, there were more dresses to be tried on. Much like a great pair of shoes, there is always something better around the corner.

Randy, my new found confidante, equipped with his honest, and best, opinion, thought that this dress was the best dress - so far. (What does that mean really??) As expected, he talked me and my mother out of my other goose-bump factor dress; a beautiful Ulla-Maijer design. You know what?!? Randy was 100% correct. I left Kleinfelds feeling confident that that would be the dress...

Next stop - the Saks Fifth Avenue bridal salon. Again, unfortunately, we were not offered anything to drink -what gives anyway!?! Champagne would have been perfectly acceptable and appreciated. Hopefully when the dress is purchased I'll get my glass of Champagne. Hopefully. Champagne aside, I met with our bridal consultant Stephanie, who, totally got me.

She brought in a variety of designers - Vera, Carolina, Ulla-Maijer, Melissa Sweet,and Amsale, to name a few. When I first heard her say Vera Wang and Carolina Herrera, I thought "Um, yeah that's definitely out of budget, but alright, twist my arm, it can't hurt to try them on." But I was in for a nice surprise when the Herrera dress came in within budget! Cha-ching.

Alas, Vera, was not....but can you really put a price on beauty (dad)?!

To my shocked surprise, Charles Bunstine (aka the designer from Ulla-Maijer) was at the bridal salon. We small talked and got along great but I'm pretty sure my mom insulted him. She didn't like the first dress I tried on that just happened to be his design. GASP. She said something about "the bunching" and "draping" and how she didn't like it. He wasn't too pleased. Oh well. "On to the next dress" I said.

After more than a dozen or so dresses, I didn't think that I would find anything I loved more than the Christos dress until I tried on two dresses; a black and ivory Carolina Herrera dress and a different Ulla-Maijer dress. My mother, forever perplexed, had an even more perplexed look on her face. I wasn't sure she liked it but as it turns out, she was too confused about which dress she liked best! As am I. Or was. I left Kleinfelds so sure that I had found my dress, and now, I just can't decide!

After all is said and done, the deciding factor will be this: I need to see the Ulla-Maijer dress with the detachable train. Somehow Saks "misplaced" it. In fact, Saks was disappointing over all. A lot of their dresses were missing pieces, a bow here, a train there. The dresses looked as if they had been through a war - white should never look gray. I was shocked and I'm an SFA groupie. Also, they did not have the sample size 10 in all of the dresses. Some were made for mannequins! The mannequins I know are clearly diminutive, zero or maybe a 2. I couldn't get most of them zipped up which was a real letdown. Charles reassured me and asked me to go check out the dress I was interested in "in all it's glory" (aka with the train) on the Ulla-Maijer website. I have to say, he was right. Once I saw it with the train I fell in love. This might be the dress. I just now need to find it with the train.

Randy, of Kleinfelds was nice enough to give me his cell phone number if I had any questions at all. Well, I had plenty of questions today and I am currently waiting for him to return my call so I can find out if he can get the Herrera and the Ulla-Maijer dress in stock. I need to see them side by side and then my girls can come and give me their opinion. If not, then I will start making phone calls all over the city to find this darn dress and train. But let's wait and see what Randy has to say...

The Carlyle Revisited...

This past Saturday we returned to The Carlyle to look at the Lenox Room set up for a ceremony - I'm so anal about size I need to see it set up - imagine that.

Unfortunately, the Lenox Room wasn't set up. Fortunately, the wedding scheduled was set up outside AND in the round. It looked great. Imagine a rose-petal-strewn path leading up to a beautifully decorated huppa (L'shana tova to all you Jews out there!!!) surrounded by an audience of white chairs and candles. It really looked great. The weather couldn't have been nicer; low 70s and breezy.

No matter the weather, we're still getting married in the Lenox Room. My fears of not having enough room for guests, chairs, and Coco's HUGE wedding party, etc. were calmed. The room is much longer and wider than I remember (75'l x 29'w).

We were fortunate enough to have one of The Carlyle's maitre d's on site (Gerald) as he walked us through this weddding's entire set up. The table linens, the flowers, the themed food stations, even baskets of WC essentials (ie. breath mints, Tide StainStick, dental floss, you name it!) I must admit - it all looked stunning. Very classy. I'm sure the bride & groom were happy. I'm sure we will be also.

I definitely walked away with some things to remember:

- Enough photography lighting (reflective devices might be nice if our fotog isn't bringing them. I wonder if The Carlyle will charge me extra for some tin foil??

- I've only been there 3 times and each time I'm thrown off as soon as I turn off the Bethpage Parkway. Too many damn roundabouts if you ask me. One or two signs, placed strategically, can only do wonders for guests.

- To me, this is the biggest one yet. I'm not sure if you can tell in the pictures or not but The Carlyle has a beautiful circle cobble stone drive that welcomes guests to the clubhouse. I distinctly recall I speaking with The Carlyle representative, Cynthia Benard, about making sure Carlyle or NY state staff do not park in the spots that seem to be available due to sheer available space. I'd be livid if I pulled up an hour or two before my wedding and saw cars circled like wagons getting raided by injuns. The more I think about it the more I'm realizing I may not be able to control this - damn Friday afternoon golfers. It's killing me. Seriously.

A Toast Is In Order!!

Congratulations to Lori & Bart on their wedding down in Curacao! Here's what went down straight from the horse's mouth:

Hello!

We arrived along with the hurricane and without the luggage Saturday night. Then the bar had no Kettle One and no decent Tequilla and we were NOT happy! Whatever the island saw of the hurricane came as we were sleeping for the most part- a lot of wind and rain! It cleared up by mid day though. We walked around town commando in our jeans and had some very funny little arguments along the way- miss and mr crabby!! Bart abruptly pulled the car over at one point, got out, opened my door and told me to drive. I laughed. I was being a brat and wouldn'y give him directions, you see. We all have our moments!

The luggage finally arrived at midnight Sunday night and from that point on we've had a fabulous time! Our wedding day was spectacular and the wedding planner did an amazing job executing what I had asked for. The ceremony was on Cas abou beach, a small white sand beach bordered by cliffs on the western end of the island. We were married under a thatched hut with beautiful flowers and shells, etc. Maria, our tunic-ed island local "metaphysical consultant" read a variety of poems and shared some wise words. She was the most warm and lovely person and we could not have asked for a better officiant of our personally written vows.

We then shared a private dinner under the stars lit by torches at a different beach about 30 minutes drive. It was divine! Except for the 79 mosquto bites I got. We both agreed it was all dreamy and exactly what we wanted. The photographer took loads of pics which we share once we return.

We went sailing yesterday with some old salty dogs- great time, great guys.

Today we went swimming with the dolphins- a truly once in a lifetime experience everyone should do. They are incredible. I think it was Bart's favorite activity thus far. We have some great pics from that too.

The food's been great- and the service at the hotel is amazing. The people of the island are lovely. We have no complaints!! (Amazing what having clean undies and your own toothbrush does!)

Hope everyone is well- love to all and we'll check in once we get back late Monday night!!!

We'll be at the pool having pina coladas if you need us!!!
xxxooo


[Note to self: Buy bug spray in Thailand.]

ps....here's a great photo of them!

I'm Not Sure Why But...

I really don't find save-the-date magnets that offensive. Go figure, right.




But regarding save-the-dates, I think the following are important:

* A picture of the bride and groom must be used. How many times have you been to a wedding where you didn't know who the bride or the groom was??

* Make sure said photo doesn't look too.....[insert word of your choice that's nicer than gay.]

* Both the bride and groom must agree on the format to be used. Horizontal, vertical, seasonal, 1 image vs. multiple images, etc.

I'm sure I'll have other constraints when it's time to pull the trigger.

The Center Of It All - Well Sort Of

Centerpieces are but one element that should carry the theme (wait, there's a theme?!) of the reception throughout the night. They can can either tie everything together, provide an unnecessary barricade or fall flat and be overlooked. There are a myriad of options out there ranging from candles like hurricane candles and candleabras to vases overflowing with your choice of flowers to centerpieces with both candles AND flowers. I have not doubt that most florists can assemble something to most people's liking (& budget!). I, however, am not like most people.

With that being said, I may be a bit opinionated when it come to planning this wedding but I expect what I want - It's that simple. Almost a year from the date and I have no idea what the perfect centerpiece will be - yet. Here are some of the points to consider:

* size (small, short, tall, narrow, etc.)
* style (candles, flowers, potted, vase, other fauna, etc.)
* motif (classic, modern, country, symmetric and uniform, etc.)
* table layout (size, shape, # of seats, etc.)
* season (ours is a fall wedding)
* time of day (afternoon, evening, night, etc.)
* locations (tables, washrooms, cocktail location, welcome table, ceremony, etc.)
* HER bouquet (flowers, color)
* clean up (or will the guests just take them home?)
...and last but not least
* cost


Above all else I think a centerpiece shouldn't be overwhelming. I want guests to be able to see each other either across from one another at the table or across the dance floor. Height is key for me. I'm not sure what the perfect height is but I would sacrifice girth for height no question. The problem then becomes one of stability. Tables get bumped into (for drunken and/or other reasons) and a centerpiece toppling over during the night is not an option.

Resources are out there but they are limited. I've found these to be helpful at first glance:

* Better Homes & Gardens
* The Knot (Obvsiously)
* Centerpiece Building Blocks
* The Wedding Channel


While there is plenty of time to argue - achem - negotiate over the details here are a few that I'd like to use as inspiration: