Wedding News
When Jonathan returned from LA, he was really excited to take me to a few things in London. He learned about the cheese market at Borough Market (where we're going tomorrow), and this restaurant he wanted to go to. Almost the first thing that Jonathan did was make reservations for this restaurant.
He wanted it to be a surprise. Was it ever! The ambiance of the restaurant was incredible. Words cannot describe what it was like in there. So, we took a picure of what the inside looks like (we're not supposed to, so don't tell anyone).
Click here to see it.
Seriously, that is exactly what it was like. Click to read more about it... (WARNING: if you want to go to this restaurant, what follows does contain spoilers.)
Both Carrie and Jonathan recommend that if you're ever in Paris or London that you give this a try. It's amazing what you learn about others, and (more importantly) about yourself.
Continue reading "The French are in the dark - literally and conceptually" »
Once again, we want to thank all of you for helping to make our wedding so special, either by your attendance, or by all the things you did to make our wedding just perfect. Thank-you so much!
So... All of our wedding pictures are online. There is a fun slideshow (put together by Tom) at http://www.tomkphoto.com/0709cjk/slideshow/ and the gallery of photos is available at http://www.tomkphoto.com/0709cjk/gallery/.
Our first couple of days in London have been fabulous. We have an awesome flat where we are staying near the South Kensington underground (tube, subway, etc.) station. Thanks so much Dan and Jane! This place rocks.
So far we have seen: Buckingham Palace, where the Queen lives; Big Ben and the houses of Parliment; Westminster Abbey; Picadilly Circus (not really a circus, it's the Times Square of London); "The Merchant of Venice" performed in The Globe Theatre (awesome); Trafalgar Square; Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens; Kensington Palace (Princess Diana's favorite home); and St. Paul's Cathedral (amazing - the main church of the Church of England).
That's a "quick" run down of what we've seen so far. We'll post detailed thoughts and feelings on some of these places when we do a more detailed post. Here are a few picture highlights (clicking on the smaller pictures will show you the larger version)
Continue reading "First Few Days of the Honeymoon" »
We had a wonderful wedding. We were so happy to get to see everyone who came from all over the country and the world. We wish we could have spent more time with all of you. We feel very blessed to have you in our lives.
Our professional pictures will be available online on Wednesday, October 3, 2007. Here's the web address where they will be posted. When we return, we will have a CD with all of the pictures on it so that we can print them for ourselves and others. You can order them through Tom's site, or you can wait for us to come back and print some off for you.
Thank you again, we love you, and we'll see you soon!
Obviously, with the wedding being just 30 days away, we've been getting a lot of questions.
THat's because you're as excited about our wedding as we are! (Well, maybe not as excited, but we're glad that you're excited and we're glad to have you in our lives!)
So, this quick post is to let you know that you can find most of the information about the wedding by clicking above on Wedding.
And then, here are the links you'll probably want to visit to find what you're looking for...
Wedding Party
Registry Information
Travel Information
If these links don't answer your questions, please let us know (you can even do it using the comments below if you want) and we'll be happy to answer!
Thank-you, and we're looking forward to seeing all of you!
People have been asking where to stay in Colorado Springs. Jonathan and I did look into blocking rooms at hotels, but it was generally more expensive for guests than if they went and reserved rooms themselves. So, we decided to set up this link instead. Book at the Embassy Suites in Colorado Springs.
7290 Commerce Center Dr, Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States 80919
Tel: 1-719-599-9100 Fax: 1-719-599-4644
This is the hotel where we will be staying, and most of our guests will be staying here as well. It won't cost you any more to stay here, but Jonathan and I will get 2% back of whatever your room rate is by booking through the above link. If you want to though, you can also check at www.embassysuites.com to see if the rate is different.
Here are a couple of other available hotels as well.
Bradford Homesuites Colorado Springs
(Carrie and Jonathan stayed here in March 2007, and thought that these suites were very nice - about 5 miles away from the church).
Antlers Hilton
(In downtown Colorado Springs - closer to where we're getting married - also more expensive)
Best Western on Academy
Hope this helps everyone, and we look forward to seeing you at the wedding!
Continue reading "Hotel in Colorado Springs" »
After working with Michelle at Biondi for months designing and honing my ring for months, she finally called with the news I've been waiting for. It's ready! Jonathan and I went to take a look at it today. Michelle took pictures of us seeing it for the first time. It's absolutely gorgeous, and I can't wait to wear it (in less than two months now). I love it. Thank you Michelle and all teh Biondi team!
Sorry, you'll have to wait until the wedding to see what the ring looks like.
It's so much fun to check our mailbox every day. Now that *most* of our invitations are out, the responses are coming in. Yesterday we got 4 back. And everyone is coming! YAY! Yes, it really is the little things that excite me.
We mailed our invitations yesterday. Watch your mailbox!
Today we bought our plane tickets for our honeymoon! We're going to have a great time in London (Thanks so much Dan and Jane!). We're also going to see a few other places while we're there: Paris, Oldenberg (where Jonathan studied as an exchange student), Berlin, and Houston (thanks Brian and Jamie!). We may even have a few more stops along the way. It's going to be a fabulous trip.
Yay! And, I managed to save more than 60% by ordering online! It's a gorgeous gorgeous dress. I'm so happy that I finally found one. Click here to see a picture of it:
View image
Continue reading "And I have a dress!" »
Last week, Jonathan took me to Biondi to begin the process of designing my ring. It was such an awesome experience. Michelle (the co-owner, with her husband) had me sit down and try on almost every ring in the store. She wanted me to be sure that I knew what I liked. While I was doing that, it was like she was reading my mind. I even think she was a couple of times. She even had me try on rings that I liked outside so that I could see what they looked like in natural light.
I found two that I think I really like. They're quite different from each other, but both are very unique, and will be even more so when we design the final ring together. Michelle is ordering in some loose stones so that we can choose which one(s) to be put into the final ring.
Our next appointment is this Friday, and I can't wait! If anyone is looking for any type of jewlery, go to Biondi (in Aurora at Parker and Quincy). I've never had a better experience!
Last week, Jonathan and I went to Bed Bath and Beyond and played virtual laser tag. We got to run through the store with a scan gun and beam things to our wish list. It was great fun! (Even though Jonathan got to do most of the scanning.)
Yesterday we received our first wedding gift! Thanks Steve! Can't wait to see you here in July.
I thought it would be nice for all of you to see pictures of the chapel where we're getting married in Colorado Springs. More pictures can be seen in the extended entry.
Here is the picture that made us choose to visit Shove. I'm not sure who took it, or how they got it that light, but it's gorgeous!
Continue reading "Shove Memorial Chapel" »
Thursday Jonathan is going with our friends Simone and John to a tasting event through Epicurean catering. He'll have to post his thoughts on it and the food. I would go too, but I have to be in class. So, it's just Jonathan this time. Stay tuned.
You know how you can have your sights set on something, and then when you get it, it's not what you thought? Well, that's how this shopping experience was. I have been obsessing over a particular gown for a few months, and when I actually got to try it on, it didn't look pretty. I had spent hours scouring the internet to find something I liked, and I thought this was it. But, sadly, it's not going to work out between us. I did try on some others that I liked ok, but none that I loved. But, a big thanks to my good pal Shannon for making it work in her schedule to go shopping with me! I had a great time. Let's do it again!
Oh and the first experience was so bad that I don't even want to talk about it...still.
Well, nearly all of our major venues and vendors are booked for the wedding. The next biggest thing on the list is finding a DJ. It's funny, I didn't know that either of us was very picky about music, until we began searching for our song master. Because Jonathan's brother Adam was a DJ for so long, and we've been to several places recently that had a crummy dj, we would really like a good one. A really good one. You know, one who knows what songs to play when so that people keep dancing; one who has some common sense and knows that certain songs are inappropriate at a wedding; one who can read a crowd. Sure we've got a "must play" list and a "no tip for you if you play these songs list" in mind, but that's not quite enough.
Does ANYONE out there know of a good DJ? Any help greatly appreciated.
After all my research, one florist kept springing up. Dawn with Hillside Consultants came with by far the most and highest recommendations of anyone else out there. I spent hours looking through her online picture galleries, pictures of all the flowers from some of the weddings she's done in the past, and decided to give her a call. Ok, I didn't actually call her. I emailed her. I wanted to know if she was willing to travel to Colorado Springs. It turns out that she's based in the Springs. Big plus there. And, after much emailing back and forth (because I am confused and don't know exactly what I want flowers wise), Dawn agreed that we could sign a general contract that doesn't give flower specifics yet, but agrees that she will be the florist who creates flower magic for our wedding. Yay! Thanks Dawn. I'll get back to you soon on the flowers.
Finally! We booked a site for our reception: the First United Methodist Church. It is only five blocks away from Shove Chapel. The reception will be held in their Fellowship Hall. Fellowship Hall is just as nice (if not better) as all of the other locations we looked at, with one exception. There is no dance floor. So, we’ll either be renting one or building one. We’ll see. But, for the price, there really is no comparison. The room is attached to a kitchen, and large enough to hold everyone. Because we’re holding the reception in a church, there will not be any alcohol served. At first we were a little concerned about this, but we decided that alcohol shouldn’t be a necessity for any party. And, since we’re having it in the middle of the afternoon, we thought maybe we could go out afterwards (maybe even back to the hotel for some of Uncle Don’s famous margaritas?). We’re really excited to have found a location that fits our needs, both according to our budget and our size. There are also two baby grand pianos in the fellowship hall. Anyone interested in participating in a bit of a dueling piano show? Sounds like fun to us!
While we were driving to Holyoke, we heard back from Mr. Biggs. Everything they told us while on the phone contradicted what we had been told before. Apparently now we cannot bring in our own caterer; we have to use theirs. Their rates have gone up dramatically, and they basically told us they could take or leave our business. We aren't really in the mood to buy bad food and bad business for those whom we invite to our wedding, so Mr. Biggs is now out of the running. Next up???????
Well, even without a reception location we thought we might as well start hunting for a caterer. After looking through pricing and other information for several caterers, we're a bit concerned. Right now our thoughts are that we'll go with Bennett's BBQ or Qdoba. They are far better price wise than any "real" caterer we've looked at. And, their food is better. We'll see...
Jonathan's solo mission was successful. He decided that both places were worth taking a look at together. So, today we traveled down to the Springs to take a look at Mr. Bigg's Event Center and Paragon's Royal Ballroom.
When first arriving at Mr. Bigg's, Carrie was a bit skeptical. The appearance from outside definitely left something to be desired, but she kept an open mind remembering that more than just books should not be judged by the cover. Once making their way to the event center, Carrie was pleasantly surprised. The room is spacious, fun, and has its own entrance and bathrooms. Carrie's main concern was the lighting. It was very bright in there with all the lights turned on full blast. So, Jonathan sought out a person to show us lighting options, and all was made well. The environment at Mr. Bigg's is definitely a "fun" one.
From there the two managed to find their way, while avoiding the construction on I-25 to Paragon's Royal Ballroom. However, upon arrival, we found that the facility manager was away, and he wasn't answering his phone. We left and went to look again at the chapel. It was still dimly lit, but less so than either of us remembered. We did notice that all shoes should have soft soles, otherwise the sound of footsteps will permeate the entire chapel.
We're excited to book a reception location, and while one has not been decided on one yet, it will be soon. Keep tuned in for more details!
Jonathan was doing a Pre Paid Legal briefing in Pueblo on Wednesday night, and one in the Springs on Thursday night. He decided that since he was down that way anyway, he may as well check out a few of the reception sites we're considering. (Yes, we still need to book our reception venue.) His mission for this trip is a simple one: to decide if these two places are worth considering. He will take pictures and notes that will determine whether or not both of us should go together to look at these sites next week.
Last week, Jonathan, Adam, and Laura attended an event at one place we're considering. It was nice to have their opinion in addition to Jonathan's.
Updates on all potential venues will be posted soon.
After a tip from my friend, Shannon, Jonathan and I managed to find a photographer who takes amazing photojournalist pictures at an affordable price. He also took my friend Lincoln's engagement pictures, and those turned out amazing.
If you would like to see some examples of his pictures, you can go to www.tomkphoto.com.
Thank you Tom K! (and Shannon Szameitat!)
We had been considering three people to officiate our wedding. We finally selected Pastor John Larson. Pastor Larson has been very involved in Carrie's life, almost since she was born. He is the Pastor who performed many of the pivotal church services in her life, including her: younger sister's baptism, older sister's and brother's confirmations, brother and sister-in-law's wedding, and father's funeral. It's really going to be wonderful to have a minister who has such a connection with Carrie's family to marry us.
Thank you Pastor Larson!
Well, we finally got ahold of the International Polka Club. It turns out that they do not rent the upstairs ballroom to people who haven't been members for at least two years. We tried everything, but to no avail. They wouldn't budge for legal reasons. So, we're back to hunting for a nice reception location. Wish us luck!
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We booked our ceremony site today! Mark
your calendar for: |
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September 29, 2007 |
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The location: Shove Memorial Chapel, Colorado Springs,
Colorado. We always said that we wanted sometime the last week of
September, or the first two weeks in October. October 6th was our ideal
date, but it's homecoming at Colorado College that weekend, so we went
with September 29th instead, just two days after Jonathan's 28th birthday.
Didn't want to step on Jonathan's brother Brian's toes (or birthday).
Here are some pictures: |
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Outside Shove Memorial Chapel |
 Inside Shove Memorial Chapel |
Well, we chose our wedding party! It's a small (but very important) step in the process. We asked, and everyone said yes. Well, everyone except our flower girl my cutie niece, Emma. She still needs to think about it. And they are...
Continue reading "Attendants: Asked and Accepted" »
Today we went to Colorado Springs. I had seen pictures online of a church there that looked beautiful. So, today we went to scope it out. We also decided that as long as we were in the Springs, we might as well check out prospective reception sites as well. Here's a TIP: when looking to book wedding and reception sites, call the local visitor's bureau for information. Kem hooked us up with all kinds of venues we would not have found by ourselves. Thanks Kem!
Continue reading "Adventures in Colorado Springs" »
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