Shana & Sean's PJ - 7/5/13 Swan/Fultons *Wedding TR - Updated 9/1*

[ShanaMouse]

So first off, I can't believe it's only 4 and a half months until the wedding. Where has the time gone?!?! I remember when I started my PJ right after we crossed over to the 1 year mark...

Well anyway, I do have some mini updates:

1. Cancelled DF and I's secret honeymoon trip because one of my best friends who is like my sister has confirmed that she is coming to the wedding all the way from Germany!!! I havent seen her in 3 years so I decided to cancel the mini honeymoon so that we can have a few extra days together while she is visiting. DF is super excited she is coming too so we are going back to our mini disneymoon idea, as this is where she, her son (my godson), and her boyfriend are staying too. DF will just go on our official honeymoon when we had initially wanted to closer to the end of this year.

2. After many emails back and forth, I finally ordered my flowers. We went with Greenery productions and I got my bouquet, three bridesmaid bouquets, DF's boutonniere, 2 groomsmen boutonnieres, toss bouquet, aisle runner, and rose petals to line the aisle for about $700.00. This is pretty good coming from $1200.00 originally on our floral BEO.

3. we decided to do a more informal welcome event at the Cabana Bar & Beach Club at the Dolphin resort on July 4th for lunch. We wanted to spend the day at Epcot anyway so for lunch we will just head over there and meet all of the others that are already in town that want to hang out for some drinks and food.

4. we were gonna do Biergarten's at Epcot for dinner the night of the wedding but instead I just made a large party ressie at 'Ohana's. We went there for the first time this weekend and it was great. Some of the food wasnt spectacular but overall I loved the atmosphere, the family style serving of the restaurant and the fact that we could see the fireworks from there.

5. We got a caricaturist for the reception instead of a DJ. It'll serve as entertainment and a wedding favor at the same time. Super excited!!

I am also still waiting to receive the lunch reception menus from Fulton's so we can finally pick one and get everything set up. She did state that they will probably be available some time this week so I am keeping my fingers crossed.
We also decided that we would keep decor at Fultons for our reception fairly simple: votive candles with flower petals on tables.

I have been trying to figure out names for the tables... Any suggestions? I don't just want numbers but maybe names of places or something like that.

I felt like I had so much more to share but I suddenly ran out of ammo lol... I will be back once i think of it!

Oh, there was also a disbride meetup this past weekend and it was awesome!!! I met some awesome ladies who I will hopefully see again very soon. Definitely had a great time; we even had a dessert party at Epcot, which was amazing!!

Thanks for still reading along!

 

[Summer Daydream]

I can't believe how close the wedding is either!!! Congrats on knocking down the floral budget. And yay for your friend coming from Germany!!! I bet you are so excited. I like the idea of informal get togethers the day before. I feel like a wedding is so structured its nice to have the relaxing night before. Ohana is one of my favorite places to eat...I know the food is not the best, but the atmosphere is so much fun!
As far as table names, for our at home reception we were thinking of naming them for places or things special to us. For example, we bonded over hockey so we are thinking a picture of us at a hockey game for the table. I always think that's cute since sometimes people don't know all the details about one of the members of the couple, so they can kind of learn something about the couple too. Mom wanted Disney table names but I feel like almost everyone who gets married at Disney does that, so I wanted to do something different.

 

[ShanaMouse]

I can't believe how close the wedding is either!!! Congrats on knocking down the floral budget. And yay for your friend coming from Germany!!! I bet you are so excited. I like the idea of informal get togethers the day before. I feel like a wedding is so structured its nice to have the relaxing night before. Ohana is one of my favorite places to eat...I know the food is not the best, but the atmosphere is so much fun!
As far as table names, for our at home reception we were thinking of naming them for places or things special to us. For example, we bonded over hockey so we are thinking a picture of us at a hockey game for the table. I always think that's cute since sometimes people don't know all the details about one of the members of the couple, so they can kind of learn something about the couple too. Mom wanted Disney table names but I feel like almost everyone who gets married at Disney does that, so I wanted to do something different.

Those table names are such a cute idea!!! And you are so right, a lot of the time people don't even know these little details that make the relationship so special so having table names that reflect that is a great idea! Yeah, I didn't necessarily want Disney table names for the same reason you stated. Our theme is sort of a garden party-esque one but I don't really want to use flower names for the tables either, as that seems what everyone has been suggesting.

 

[ShanaMouse]

Hey All of you still reading along!!

Just wanted to give a brief update that we finally received the group dining menus from Fulton's a few days ago and we have picked out our menu!!

I am super excited for the food

So here it is:

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Appetizer (one per person.. sorta like a sampler):
Lobster Corn Dogs
Salsa Verde, sweet chili aioli
Bruschetta
Locally grown tomato, basil, mozzarella, parmesan, pesto, ciabatta
Crab Ceviche
Tomatillo, sweet onion, cherry tomatoes, cilantro, avocado

Entree (choice of):
Lobster Ravioli
mushroom ragout, sage, brown butter, manchego
Fresh Florida fish selection
North Atlantic Salmon, chef's season preparation featuring locally grown ingredients
Roasted Free Range Chicken Breast
brown butter sauce and mushroom ragout with roasted potatoes

Dessert:
wedding cake

*accompanied with fresh bread and butter, lavosh and crab boursin, iced tea and coffee service.
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We havent yet decided on what the wedding cake will be as we are still jumping between wedding cake and mini pies... It's on my list of things to figure out within the next week or two.

Starting next week or so I should have some more picture heavy posts again... I realized I have been slacking

Talk to you all soon!

 

[Summer Daydream]

Your menu sounds awesome. Would you be willing to share the menus with me if you still have them?
P.S. I'm rooting for the pies to win over a cake. I love how unique they would be.

 

[ShanaMouse]

Your menu sounds awesome. Would you be willing to share the menus with me if you still have them?
P.S. I'm rooting for the pies to win over a cake. I love how unique they would be.

yeah, i can definitely send them to you. Do you want me to send them via facebook email?

 

[ShanaMouse]

Happy Sunday everyone!!!

We are making more progress, yay!
First off, DF and I went down to Men's Wearhouse in Winter Garden here and actually found a tux for DF and his groomsmen. He saw it right when we walked in and didn't really care for any of the other options the sales associate was showing him

DF was planning on wearing a tan suit but the one he loved was grey and I told him the grey will still match with everything so if he wants that one then its fine by me. I kept making sure to tell him that, while I am glad that he is asking my opinion, I am not the one wearing it and I want him to feel comfortable and 007ish and not like he was forced to wear a particular tux or suit.

Needless to say, DF was measured and we set up an account and have his suit locked in. Its one of the new Vera Wang suits that they just started offering for tuxedo rentals.

Price wise I was very pleased. The rental is a 3 piece suit, shirt, cufflinks, tie, pocket square, socks, and shoes for $200.00. DF is going to be wearing a black and greyish tie and the boys will have a very light pink color tie with pocket square to match. Even my dad said that he will get the same suit and just switch up the tie and pocket square so that everything goes together when we take family pics and everything. Anyway, here are some pics:

The tie above is the one DF will be wearing

Moving right along, I am off from school for the next week for spring break so I decided that it was time to start doing some DIY projects. The other night I was sitting at home doing homework (but not really paying attention to that as much as I should have been) so I started thinking about table names again. I didn't wanna do the traditional Disney park names or rides or movies... Then it hit me! Pixar Shorts! DF and I love watching them and could watch them over and over so I figured, why not use those as table signs!

This was my first attempt at them:

DF and I will redo them this week, as we now figured out the trick in making them a little more sturdy. We will also reprint the images on photo paper so they are glossy, as opposed to just plain old printer paper. I am really loving how they turned out, though!
We will make a total of 7 table signs and the shorts we chose are:

• For the Birds
• La Luna
• Presto
• Lifted
• Luxo Jr
• Day & Night
• Partly Cloudy

We may switch out one or two of them, depending on how they look when printed but other than that, that'll be the table names. I bough mini easels on which we will just put them.

In non wedding related news I am excited to share that I have lost almost 35lbs since christmas. i tried on my wedding dress and it is slightly too big now but my mom said it wouldnt be a big deal to take it in, especially because the top doesnt have a lot of details to where it would be more difficult.

DF and I also headed down to Downtown Disney today because we wanted to look for gifts to give to our bridal party. We didnt really find anything but we did end up wanting to go to hollywood studios so instead of driving our car over there, we walked over to the DTD bus stop to get to the park. I forgot, however, that the buses at DTD only go to other resorts and not another park directly. DF and I saw a sign for Art of Animation and neither one of us had ever been so we just hopped on that bus to go check out the resort.... I LOVE IT!! We took a ton of pictures while we were over there and decided that we wanted to stay there on one of our staycations at Disney next time.

FYI - it was only about 55 degrees so we were freezing but still had a really fun time. ENJOY

 

[Bewitch324]

Love love love the pixar table names idea! I think that will be so cute! I think you're on the right track with doing them on glossy paper but otherwise I think the ones you did already turned out super cute!!

Adorable pictures at Art of Animation. We haven't been over there since it was still the unfinished part of Pop Century and it looked so sad and lonely. now it looks so vibrant and fun!!!

Brooke

 

[Summer Daydream]

Yay for figuring out the table names. And as I said before I love them!!! Your DIY project came out a million times better than anything I have tried this far!
Your pictures at AofA are so great!!! The Lion King area is by far my favorite. Your picture with Rafiki is so cute and I love the pose under Timon and Puumba. Btw, I would pay for some 55 degree weather up here. You're getting so close...I am getting so excited for you

 

[charliegirl76]

OH! The updates look good! I love the table names, what a fantastic idea!!

I hope to get some pictures of us at AoA too. We were going to stay there for our planning session, but DF has never been so I let him pick the hotel.

Is that suit part of the Vera Wang collection at Men's Wearhouse?

 

[ShanaMouse]

Love love love the pixar table names idea! I think that will be so cute! I think you're on the right track with doing them on glossy paper but otherwise I think the ones you did already turned out super cute!!

Adorable pictures at Art of Animation. We haven't been over there since it was still the unfinished part of Pop Century and it looked so sad and lonely. now it looks so vibrant and fun!!!

Brooke

we had never been over to AoA so I was definitely amazed at the way it looked. It was so vibrant a huge.. I felt so small lol!

Yay for figuring out the table names. And as I said before I love them!!! Your DIY project came out a million times better than anything I have tried this far!
Your pictures at AofA are so great!!! The Lion King area is by far my favorite. Your picture with Rafiki is so cute and I love the pose under Timon and Puumba. Btw, I would pay for some 55 degree weather up here. You're getting so close...I am getting so excited for you

I loved the Lion King and Cars area (probably because it was so empty lol). We didnt get any good pics in the little mermaid area and it was, honestly, probably my least favorite. Every 2 seconds I told DF to snap a picture lmao!
The closer it gets the more nervous I get but I am so excited that it's almost my turn

OH! The updates look good! I love the table names, what a fantastic idea!!

I hope to get some pictures of us at AoA too. We were going to stay there for our planning session, but DF has never been so I let him pick the hotel.

Is that suit part of the Vera Wang collection at Men's Wearhouse?

Yeah, the suit was one of two in the Vera Wang collection. DF now thinks that he will look better than I will but I dont think so lol! Which hotel did he pick for the planning session? DF and I both said that we want to stay in one of the suites at AoA next time because of how vibrant it is. Also, the food in the food court looked amazing! everything from burgers to crab cakes, pizza, and sandwiches and all sorts of desserts. DF said we need to go there just for dinner one day hahaha

 

[LittleKittyMarie]

Finally caught up on your PJ. I started reading your PJ ages ago, but I just realized I never commented, I have no idea why. First of all, I love your plans! Your dress and your bridesmaid dresses are beautiful! The tuxes look very dashing too. Your Save the dates were so cute. Your engagement photos were so lovely. And everything sounds awesome!

 

[ShanaMouse]

Hey Everyone!
It's been 2 months since I last posted and I'm so sorry that I neglected this PJ. things have just been so crazy and time is slipping away from me lol.

So, to get right to it, I have a lot of updates, I think... Forgive me if I forget something but I have a total case of wedding brain hahahah.

We finally got all of the tuxedos for Sean, my dad, his dad, and his groomsmen. Whew!! Sean was dragging this out and it was driving me nuts ahhaha.

We also decided to skip a rehearsal. For one, I feel like our bridal party is small enough to where I think we will be fine without it and, secondly, its another expense that I am not sure we have in the budget. We are also going to Epcot the day before the wedding, so I am not quite sure where to fit this in.

We sent out our invites at the beginning of April and had our RSVP date by April 30th. We are still waiting on a handful, but Sean has that under control. Right now we are at about 46 guests, not including us. I am okay with this number; much better than the 80 we invited.

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I ordered the invites off of Vista Print after going back and forth for weeks on what to do. invites werent my priority so I also didnt want to end up spending a ton of money. Luckily i had one of those groupons that was about $25 or so for $100 worth of stuff of vistaprint. I ended up spending another $50ish out of pocket. Can we please discuss how expensive stamps are?! I spent $66 on stamps alone, which is insane!!

moving on, we also got our cake ordered with Its Tasty Too. Heather was so sweet and we had a ton of cake to try and pick from. Here is a picture of the cake i had in mind. heather will do the same thing in the same color but change the flower into more of a fantasy-ish flower, a la alice in wonderland in different pink tones.


Most of our flavors are tropical, but i made sure to have one decadent one in there we have a layer of lemon cake with strawberry filling, which was insane!! then we have a layer of pistachio cake with coconut filling, one with coconut cake and pineapple filling and, lastly, an amaretto cake with white chocolate filling. Is it bad that I cant wait to eat cake?! hahahaha

Not sure if I had mentioned this, but we also have a caricature artist and we have a live musician. He usually plays in the downtown disney area, and is known as the conchman. Here is a link if anyone is interested: http://ats.patrickfrost.com/conch_man_music/

I am also going for my first dress fitting this sunday!! super excited but also pretty nervous about it. I have lost about 60lbs since I got the dress and it is way too big. I am just nervous in finding out how much its going to cost and if it can even be done, i guess!

I also ended up booking a hair and makeup trial with beaute speciale - i was at a hair salon the other day and they were talking about a bridal party that was about to come in and how difficult it is to do up do's on long/thick hair. Being that i have both of those i got a lil nervous and so i booked a trial to make sure that my hair can look the way i imagine.

DF and I also started some DIY projects, such as our menus.

there is a ribbon around the finished product, but essentially thats what it looks like.

I also finally figured out our centerpieces. I managed to pay about $20 per centerpiece/table. I got all of it from michaels the other day. We are doing sort of island-y/beach-y/ocean-y theme. Please forgive the bad place setting, I just needed to do a mockup at home


I also found out where my bachelorette party will be... wait for it... Savannah, GA! I am soooo excited for this. It is not your typical bachelorette party location but i have heard a lot about it being a great experience for partying. We will be going the second weekend in june!! I did find my dress and shoes already for when we go out

my friends are also flying in from germany in about 7 weeks, so i am stoked for that as well!

As far as our wedding weekend plans are concerned, we are drinking around the world the day before the wedding. We will start at about 1pm and go through late afternoon/early evening. That way we can then all change at a hotel and either head back out to dinner or whatever and not be hungover the next morning
The next day is the ceremony and then fultons until 3:30pm. we then have reservations at Ohana at 8:30pm to meet back up with everyone who wants to join. After that we may go out to dance or so, not sure yet. The day after that, saturday, we plan on sleeping in and kind of meeting up with everyone along the day. Sean and I are doing dinner by ourselves that night at Jiko.

I am sure I am forgetting something but i cant think of it right now. Oh yea, I ordered a card box off of etsy that I am going to be decorating this weekend. Other than that i still have a laundry list of things to do. I hope to keep you all posted and thanks for reading!!

SHana

 

[MrsDuck]

Shana, everything is coming together so nicely! I love your cake and all your invites! Your centerpieces look great!

Very excited for you - time is going to continue to fly! Post pictures of the dress fitting!

 

[Summer Daydream]

Yay to Sean getting the suits squared away! One less thing on the list! What cake did you ultimately decide on? I can't believe you are less than two months away!! So excited for you

 

[charliegirl76]

Yeah, the suit was one of two in the Vera Wang collection. DF now thinks that he will look better than I will but I dont think so lol! Which hotel did he pick for the planning session? DF and I both said that we want to stay in one of the suites at AoA next time because of how vibrant it is. Also, the food in the food court looked amazing! everything from burgers to crab cakes, pizza, and sandwiches and all sorts of desserts. DF said we need to go there just for dinner one day hahaha

That is the suit I chose for DF and groomsmen! I love it. We're getting it in black. Everything will be black except the ties and shoes. Black pants, jacket, vest, and shirt.

I love everything! Your cake! Before I knew I would be getting married at Disney, I wanted that cake in pink! Love.

Your invites, menus and centerpieces look great. The colors are beautiful and soft. So exciting the bachelorette party, your friends coming in from Germany, and you're less than two months away! I hope you're enjoying everything as you go and taking it all in. Everything is going to be perfect.

 

[Summer Daydream]

Ignore my first comment. The pics didn't load for me the first time! I love that cake! It is so unique. Your invites also look nice. Your color combination is one of my favorites. Let me know how the fitting goes

 

[LittleKittyMarie]

I love the invites! (Also, yes to the stamp prices! I spent almost as much on invites as stamps!)

I love the cake design. Excited to see what they come up with the flower! It sounds like it's going to be really awesome!

Can I just take a moment to gush about Pistachio and Coconut! What?! That sounds amaaazing! Your cake sounds so delicious!!

Menus and centerpieces look great!

 

[Summer Daydream]

Happy Wedding Day! I will be stalking your Facebook for pictures! I'm sure it will be amazing!!

 

[andeesings]

Happy wedding day!! I JUST saw your plans to go to Vegas... At New York New York there is a really sexy Cirque show that's perfect for a honeymoon--- check it out!! I know your wedding will be wonderful!