January 27, 2007

It’s been an emotionally tumultuous week for us.  We’ve been on a rollercoaster ride that has taken our emotions to new heights and new depths.  As Father Tom stated in a prayer with us the other day: “why we’ve been asked to walk through the path of light and of darkness at the same time we do not know.”  We sure do hope to someday know the answer.

We thank each of you for your support, as the week has most certainly been unforgettable.  The 7 Days In September has morphed into 7 Days In January.  We’ll be sure to cherish all the memories!

We look forward to seeing you all this afternoon, as well as tonight.

Until then, as Nana would say: “Take Care Of Each Other.”

Love Always,

Jonathan and Gail

For those that don’t know where we moved, here’s a hint:

It was the first really heavy snowfall here in Utah (or so I think).  We’ve had snow several other times over the last month, but this one seemed pretty thick.  We’re definitely looking forward to the weather in Scottsdale.  Is it wrong that we miss it already?  Honestly, we’re very happy here, because you can’t throw snowballs for the dog to catch in Phoenix:

We also took some time yesterday to get our third Christmas tree together up.  Our first two trees, Buckwheat the first year (it had an afro) and Chris the second year (named after the young man at Target that helped us pick it out), were nice, and is followed this year by the beautiful Snowflake (it had little patches of snow on it).  We spent the evening decorating it.  We cuddled on the couch with the fireplace lit and listening to Sarah McLachlan’s Wintersong CD, it really was the picture-perfect evening.

Looking forward to some nice Hawaii weather in late January/early February!

Like most brides-to-be, Gail was looking to shed a few pounds before the wedding.  To date, she has lost 15 pounds.  While this took improvements in many areas such as her diet and exercise, do you want to know where she places credit most recently?  The answer: her vehicle.  As with most quality GM machinery, her vehicle has its share of problems (okay, in return, so does Jonathan’s Lexus).

However, the problem that has blessed her the most is the fact that she cannot depend on her driver’s side window to roll down.  She pushes the button and sometimes it goes, and sometimes it does not.  While for most this would be seen as a huge inconvenience, leave it to Gail to find the positives.  It has stopped her from visiting numerous fast-food restaurants with a drive through window.  So, that desire for a Cherry-Limeade from Sonic on the drive home is now out of the question.  The same is true for any other quick stop for something less than healthy.

Night after night, Gail is forced to keep on driving until she can get home and enjoy a nice, scrumptious, appetizing, healthy salad.  Which, of course, she is forced to make for herself, as Jonathan doesn’t need any because he stopped at Oregano’s for a late lunch with friends enjoying pizza and a huge loaf of garlic cheese bread.  His weight?  On that, he follows the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.

But Gail isn’t worried, she was smart enough to require checking of the box for the extra protection on the honeymoon reservations, so she has the opportunity to replace him with somebody else if necessary on the trip.  Just in case the weight gets the best of him and she needs a replacement.  Mai Tai anyone?

UPDATE 12/17/2006: Gail stated today that her previous vehicle also had a faulty driver’s side window.  The interesting fact: it too was a GM.

Looking for a few good ways to create some stress?  Try the following:

1.  Get engaged.

2.  Set a wedding date almost two years later thinking you have plenty of time.

3.  Work hard to plan for the wedding.

4.  Take a break thinking you have plenty of time.

5.  Leave your job for a new job only to find out it isn’t that great.

6.  Leave that job for another new job.

7.  Have your significant other change jobs too.

8.  Move to Salt Lake City, Utah.

9.  Realize you have a ton of work to do before the wedding.

10.  Start the house buying process.

We can verify that those steps work very well.  Through all of it though, we’ve done quite well.  We’re very happy with everything, and we’ve had plenty of support.

We did, however, try very hard as soon as we both were here to get the invitations completed and sent.  We knew we wouldn’t look good if they were sent after the respond by date.  But we had to have the date as it is because of the various needs for the guest count.

Here’s a quick guide on where to place blame if something is incorrect:

Inner and outer envelopes: Groom

Contents within the envelopes: Bride

Crooked stamp on the outer envelope: Groom

Crooked stamp on the inner envelope:  Bride

No stamp on return envelope: Bride

The cake tasting went surprisingly well.  Okay, not surprisingly, but it was very easy for us to make up our minds on the cake.  We were in and out of there within an hour.  They made us a sample little cake to take home, which had a few different flavors and frostings.  We decided on a white cake with raspberry filling and Bavarian cream, and butter-cream frosting around the sides.  It’ll be four layers tall, with black ribbon around each layer, and decorated with scattered raspberries around the sides.  The top tier will be separated with three inch columns, with silver ribbon bows between the columns.  We’ve got a cute little cake topper which we took with us to the tasting to be sure it would fit just right.  Needless to say, we are very excited.  We’re sure it’ll be very pretty, and very tasty!

The marriage license was simple.  A little too simple.  The good news is that we are not First Cousins.  Well, we could be, but the state of Arizona wouldn’t know because not only do they not ask for a blood test, they don’t even ask for any form of identification.  You simply fill out the form and you’re done.  Regardless, it was nice that something for the wedding was very simple, and hey, at $65 it’s the cheapest thing so far!

We have also since visited the Pointe again to get an idea for the layout and setup for another wedding.  It answered a few questions, and raised a few more.  A lot of our stress will be resolved when we get responses to the invitations.  So far, we have everybody listed as either a yes, no, or a maybe.  Once we have definitive answers to the attendance, a lot of other things will fall into place.

The invitations have arrived, and look exceptionally great.  No errors noticed, yet.  The tricky part will be addressing the envelopes and preparing them for mailing.  That will be the next fun we have!

We finally were able to order the invitations.  However, it did take Gail to actually push Jonathan’s finger down on the mouse to click ’submit’ to finalize the order.  He needed that little shove.  It was just one of those things that could have been completed months ago, but due to little details in phrasing and verbiage it took forever.  Should we say “the dinner reception” or “a dinner reception”?  We know nobody will notice, but it’s things like this that actually took us months to get over.  It also included a lot of research as to what others have done, and what is socially acceptable.

What was scary was they actually include the following option/disclaimer when ordering the invitations:

Gail stated that we have to check the box, or else the last few months worth of discussions over the invitations would be for nothing.

We have our cake topper now as well, which works out nice as we plan to do our tasting tomorrow for the cake itself. 

Additionally, the information about tuxedos will soon be sent out to those necessary and the information will be published on our site.

The project plan has certainly helped, as it has kept us on track for accompishing our tasks.

We’ll be sure to update again after tomorrow, as I’m sure we’ll have plenty to say about the cake tasting and obtaining the marriage license!

Yesterday made it only four months away.  So we’ve gotten serious, and even created a Project Plan.  With tasks, start and end dates, resources, predecessors and more.  It’s helped so far, as we’ve knocked down several items, and begun on more.

We’ve gotten an electronic version of the floor layout at the Pointe, so we can decide how to arrange tables.  We’ve also obtained an example on how a previous wedding was set up for ideas.  We were planning on open seating, but may look into an assigned seating arrangement.

We’re planning our cake tasting for October 6th, and are also looking into obtaining the marriage license that day as well.

As a side note, do you know who another secret winner is for weddings?  The US Postal Service.  You have to buy so many stamps (we’re looking at over 150 invitations), plus you have to buy twice as many so guests can mail back the RSVP.  In 2006 for the Phoenix area (including Scottsdale and Mesa) there were an estimated 22,868 weddings.  Let’s just assume there was 100 invites per wedding.  39 cents per stamp, two per invite, for one wedding that is $78 in stamps.  For all the weddings in the Phoenix area that’s $1,783,704.  That’s not bad for just one city.  Even if you buy the stamps in bulk, you have to make sure your invite isn’t too heavy that it requires additional postage.  You can do the math, so you can see how much they make when they raise the cost per stamp by just one or two cents!  And just when you think you are done, you have to run back to the post office to get more stamps for the thank you cards!

Regardless of the large time gap between posts, we start and end the break with baby news!  While Gail’s sister, Joy, has been spending time with her new son Blake, Jonathan’s sister, Kimberly, has given birth to a baby girl – Madison Raye Vigil.  She also has a website created showing pictures that start with 3 dimensional ultrasounds, taking us through Madison’s birthday, and up to her baptism.  As if that’s not enough, we’ve now found out that Jonathan’s other sister, Jessica, also has a baby on the way.  Maybe there really is something in the water in Arizona?

As for wedding planning, not a lot has happened lately.  We followed up with the DJ to make sure there was nothing else needed to do for awhile.  We have continued to make our payments to the Pointe, and are ready to probably head over there soon to discuss table layouts and our design plans.

We’ve agreed upon the invitations, as well as the verbiage, and are now double checking exactly what it is going to say so we can place our order.  We expect that to happen in the next week.  You’d be surprised how much you can debate the verbiage on a wedding invitiation.  The good thing is that by the time you are done deciding it, neither of you will really care what font style you end up using, as you were tired from all the work up to that point.  We plan to order 150 invitations, but hopefully we won’t need them all.  In case our guest list changes between now and then, we wanted to have extras available.

We still have not set up a time for our engagement photo session.  We’ve had a hard time finding a suitable location.  We want somewhere that provides beautiful surroundings, as well as different surroundings as we’ll have the opportunity to change outfits and make the pictures unique from each other.  Although we wanted something that had a special meaning to us, we’re starting to become more flexible.  If anybody has suggestions, please let us know!

Yesterday the previously mentioned “bundle of joy” arrived at 1:15pm.  Blake even has his own website!  Gail and Jonathan both took the day off from work and spent it in Tucson with the family.  Copious amounts of photos and videos were taken, so there will be plenty for all to see and enjoy in the future.  Both mom and baby are doing well, and we’re sure we’ll get to see them again real soon.  It was a very exciting day for all of us!

Back to the wedding planning…the register pen that the couple had bought online was nice, but the guest book just wasn’t what was expected.  It’s being returned, and the search will continue for just the right one.  Here’s a sneak preview of the pen:

We’re meeting with a vendor this weekend for a real unique experience (private grand opening celebration).  Unfortunately, we’re not able to provide any more details.  Some things have to remain secret!

We’ve also got appointments scheduled with one DJ, and another one will likely be scheduled for next week as well with a different one.

We’re also meeting with a few videographers when we get time, however, time is one thing we haven’t had much of lately.

It’s amazing all the little things that have to be remembered, such as tipping the vendors as necessary, providing the special songs, making sure we get gifts for those that are partaking in this joyous event, and even remembering to have a box ready for the cake topper.   It’ll be tough enough to plan everything ahead of time, let alone remember everything we are supposed to do on that very busy day.  We are, however, planning that upcoming trip to Las Vegas in June… Don’t worry, we won’t elope.  We don’t think…

The family and friends “picnic in the park” event that we hosted on the 22nd went really well.  It was a lot of work too, but we had a lot of fun.  Everything went as planned, and it was a great opportunity to hang out with friends, as well as introduce those that hadn’t met to each other.  We’ll have to plan another one in October when it cools off again.

Nine months left!

Jonathan tried.  He told Gail today that she looked as cute as a fresh blueberry in her white shorts and blue shirt.  She told him again that he looked like a baked potato.  As he was wearing a similar outfit as before.  Now Gail is rattling off all the sweet things she did for him yesterday.  Oh, but he is to remember that she loves baked potatoes.  That makes it all better…

Gail is unfortunately working today, so we will be spending another holiday without being together with family.  Although it seems tough, its always nice to know we as a couple get to see each other when the day is done.  It’s also tough because even when we are both off from work, it is hard to decide between both families on which to visit. 

Although everyday provides us the opportunity, Easter (like most holidays) allows us the opportunity to reflect on life, and for what we are grateful.  For as stressful as a time as we both are having, we are still happy to have each other.  And the stress lasts only a few minutes and then its all happy again.  It’s a tumultuous roller coaster on which we are riding. 

As much as we may be stressed, we are very thankful for our families, as both our parents are providing a lot to make this happen.  As hard as we think we may have it, we wouldn’t have any of it without them.  They are taking on a bulk of the costs.  So when we think our costs are bad, we have to remember what it is for our parents.  Again, they are doing so much to support us both financially and emotionally.  It is really great to have such wonderful parents.  We’ll be sure to provide the same to our children.

At Petsmart yesterday we saw a new puppy, named “Res” which is to stand for “resurrection”.  The little girl named him that since he was an Easter puppy. 

We are working on making a final decision on some luminaries that we will be placing outside on the terrace at the reception.  Going with our “starry night”, or “an evening under the stars” themes, the bags have little stars cut in them so the light will reflect really well.  We hope to purchase those online this week. 

In addition, we ordered a sample invitation so we can be sure we like it before we order them in bulk.  The owner of a local store found another few initiations that were similar that she wanted to show us.  We get 25% off if we order through her, so that may be a good approach if she has something nice.

Also, Gail found a pair of shoes she likes, so she will be looking around to see where she can get the best deal.  Although the recommendation has been made to just wear fuzzy slippers or something comfortable under the dress since nobody can see them anyway, we’re going the formal route.

Jonathan has exchanged emails with his brother Justin (the best man) in regards to the videographer.  It’s Justin’s task to come up with any extra questions for the videographer that Jonathan may have not asked.  Although we are still finalizing our vendor selection, Justin worked for several years at The Royal Palms resort on Camelback for Swank Audio/Video.  It’s still a concern that any mistake we make during the ceremony will be caught permanently in high definition!

Again, happy Easter to you and your family!

We’ve looked at all the local stores we can, and we’ve scoped out as much as possible.  Today we’re making the first few purchases online.  We’re purchasing the pen that we’ve been eyeing for awhile now, as well as a guest book that we both immediately liked.  We’ve gotten lucky and found a few items that we saw online also in stores, which is nice because it allows us an opportunity to see it up close without having to make a purchase.  In addition, if we don’t like it, it’s just a trip back to the store.

The stress level is continuing to build, as the costs of things are just a lot to handle.  We’ve made payments on some items as well as purchased items, but it is overwhelming to think about how much more we have to go.  It’s tough to find that middle ground to say that we are having our wedding to be everything we’ve dreamed since we were kids, yet not feel like we are spending too much on everything.  We continue to remember that its a one time expense, and you will have no other chance to go back and do these things again.  It’s been nice to talk to others that are going through this process, as well as to read all the books and magazines.  As it tells us that, yes, weddings are ridiculously expensive, and that we are in the same range as others planning their weddings.  We feel that what sets ours apart is how and where we are spending our money.  We’ve made smart decisions so far.  We did a lot of research, and although things seem expensive to us, when compared to other locations and other items we are in the same league.

We’ve continued our music selection process, and found another few songs.  Although, our search for a DJ or band is not complete.  We’ve made several calls and exchanged numerous emails, but still haven’t found “the one”.  We’ve narrowed down a few vendors for our other things too, but still have to make some final decisions.

We’ll soon be going to look at Tuxedos, deciding on flowers, and purchasing a few other things for the reception. 

We’re going to enjoy our wedding.  After all the hard work is done, after the money is spent, it will have been well worth it.

It sure sounds like a long time away, but then why are we stressed about it so much?  The stress level has peaked lately, as Gail told Jonathan this morning that he looked like a “baked potato” as he was dressed in shades of brown.  She said she “wasn’t crazy” about the way he was dressed.  He told her in return she looked like a “roasted marshmallow” in her brown skirt and white blouse, like the “stay puft marshmallow man” from the movie Ghostbusters.  Hopefully things will calm down soon, and the nicknames will return to “sweetie”, “cutie”, and “puppy” providing a happier environment for all.

After we returned from New York, Jonathan left the next week for a work trip which took him to Madison, WI and Colorado Springs, CO.  Upon returning, it was just non-stop with things coming up here and there. 

Jonathan had been helping out a friend who owned a business, but he passed away a few weeks ago and Jonathan was helping keep things up and running during the aftermath.  Gail was able to assist with the arrangements, and things were very nice.  Additionally, Gail was able to make a trip to Tucson to check on Joy and the baby, unfortunately Jonathan had to work and was unable to accompany her.  Jonathan’s mom got new hard wood floors and tile put in her house, which meant we had to help move some furniture around.  We’re also planning a ‘party at the park’ on April 22nd.  We’re having some neighbors, friends and family to the park here in North Scottsdale.  We reserved the park for sand volleyball, basketball, and softball, and got the permits necessary to have a good time.  We will be bringing plenty of food and drinks (enough for about 30 people), so we’re looking forward to it.  Details for those that wish to attend are available here.

Although we took almost a month break from wedding planning, we seem to be back on it this week.  On Tuesday, April 4th, Gail, accompanied by her parents, bought a wedding dress!  She had gone out looking several times with her family and came back to the same dress twice, so she decided it had to be the one.  We can’t trust Jonathan enough to put a picture of the dress on the web site and not look at it, so we’ll have to just build the suspense for all until the wedding day arrives.

Gail’s initial plan was to borrow her sister Joy’s veil, however, a review of the wedding photos brought to light the fact that Joy was married in the great decade of the 90’s.  And although most would agree the 90’s were a great decade and some things from then will live forever (such as the music), there are some things that didn’t survive and just haven’t been brought back yet (such as some clothing and hair styles).  More specifically, the “poofy veil” for a wedding in the 21st century.  It just screams of the 1990’s.  Gail had a hard time going back to her sister, as Gail asked her to borrow it before she looked at it.  Gail’s sister means a lot to her, and with her being her Matron of Honor, she is really looking forward to borrowing something of Joy’s for the wedding.  With the old adage “something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue”, Gail is still working on filling those roles.  We’re sure it’ll be figured out soon.  Bonus points to those that knew the adage also contained the words “and a sixpence in your shoe”. 

Gail was able to also spend some time with Joy looking at a dress for her as well.  With Joy going on her final month of pregnancy, they were looking at getting some style ideas now so Joy can try them on after the baby is born and as time nears.

There is a new Wedding Accessory store that opened up near where we live, and we were able to find a lot of things there that we will be needing.  Jonathan’s new reading material from that store is a book entitled “What the Hell is a Groom, and What’s He Supposed to Do?”  Gail has about a half-dozen Modern Bride and other wedding magazines and books, he needed one too.  We’ll be returning to the store in a few weeks, as we finish comparing their items to items online and we make sure we know what we want.  We have a 10% off coupon that we’re using, so we’re making sure we spend it well.

The contract and payment for the photographer is also finished, so that’s another thing crossed off our list.  We sent another round of questions to our event coordinator Nicole at the Different Pointe Of View, and we are continuing our research for other decisions that need to be made.

Almost down to 291 days…

Jonathan is taking a training class in New York, so we’ve spent the last 24 hours in Manhattan.  We’ll be here a total of 7 days/6 nights.  We arrived at about 4:30pm yesterday afternoon and fly home on Thursday. 

Last night we walked to Time Square and had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe. Today we went to Rockefeller Plaza.  The following is a picture from The Top Of The Rock (Rockefeller Center).

Behind us on the left is the Empire State Building.  It was quite windy and cold up there (the 70th floor).  We took over a hundred pictures, just at Rockefeller Plaza alone.

Our room is on the 16th floor of the Sheraton Towers, and it provides a great view too.  This morning before we went to Rockefeller Plaza, we took a horse-drawn carriage ride through Central Park and also spent time in the FAO Schwarz toy store.  The following is Gail with the Toy Soldiers at the door of FAO Schwarz:

Our plans for tomorrow include visiting the Empire State Building, and taking the ferry to Ellis Island and the Statue Of Liberty.

Gail bought a bridal magazine at the airport before we left Phoenix.  We’ve been reading through it as it provides a lot of great suggestions (as well as a few hundred pages of dresses).

When we get back we will be making our deposit with the photographer too, so things are getting closer!

It is Valentine’s evening, and we find ourselves at Sonic (yes, Sonic).  Last year after Jonathan’s surgery, we came here for our dinner in our pajamas.  At Gail’s request, we are making it a tradition and plan to come here every year.  So, our second year at Sonic in our pajamas, and it is living up to its hype.  It’s quite comfy, and the cherry limeade is a great drink.

On Saturday evening Jonathan’s dad invited us to dinner.  Accompanied by his dad’s wife and Jonathan’s mother, the five of them headed to what was being hailed by his father as “the best italian food in Phoenix”.  Well, it was so good that they only take reservations and we didn’t end up eating there.  After heading to Maggiano’s as a backup, we discovered they had a two hour wait.  Our third option was Carrabba’s, which we were told would only be a 30 minute wait.  After waiting 75 minutes, we finally were seated.  However, Jonathan managed to score us four (as in 1, 2, 3, 4!) free desserts.  We made friends with the waitress, and we talked to the manager about having the rehersal dinner there.  The back room seats 40 comfortably, which is perfect.  After discussing it over dinner, Jonathan’s parents agreed it was the best location out of our other candidates (Red Devil Pizza, and Oregano’s).  There may have been a few others, but it doesn’t matter now.

The car hop has brought the food to our car, so we are ready to enjoy. 

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Gail says that we are already an old married couple because it is Friday evening, and neither of us has the energy to go to a movie.  Thus, we sit here on the couch watching Wallace and Grommit.

Building upon Gail’s comment of it being a good thing to take care of the other when sick, Jonathan went and skillfully managed to take a hit in the head with the ball during his softball game last night.  He went to the ER and got a couple staples placed in his head, for removal in 8-10 days.  So each night for the next few days, the doctor said Gail is to wake him up every few hours and ask him some simple questions to be sure he is “not loopy”.  To which she replied, “great, how am I to tell the difference?”

Looking into the future, we are still thinking about where we wish to have our rehearsal dinner.  We had quickly concluded it would be held at Carrabba’s, which is an italian restaraunt Jonathan loves, and was a first dinner date for us as a couple.  However, we have continued thinking and a few other places come to mind.  We’re still researching and discussing, but we believe that with immediate family and out of town guests attending the dinner, there could be as many as 40-50 people in attendance.  That’s almost 1/3 of our wedding guests!

There was a Will and Grace episode on television the other night, and it was about Grace helping a groom plan his wedding.  The episode was funny, as the groom was suggesting the same ideas that Jonathan had mentioned he wanted, to which Grace asked, “are you planning your 10th birthday party?”  Therefore, I guess we will not be having ice cream cake at our wedding reception.

It is Superbowl Sunday, and although the game has yet to begin (Prediction: Steelers), Gail is at work, and Jonathan is home sick.

One of Gail’s beliefs is that before two people get married, they should take care of each other when the other is sick.  With us that happened early on, as Jonathan had emergency surgery last December and was in the hospital for nearly two weeks and home for two months.  And Gail, well, we won’t mention the Christmas party after which she was a little inebriated!  Aside from those, each of us has had our occassional cold and we both do well with each other.

As for wedding planning, Gail is still searching for a dress, and Jonathan is still trying to convince Gail that they need a videographer.

We’ve just brought up our journal here, but it will likely take us time to get things just right aestetically, as well as to bring everybody up to date on our wedding planning progress.  We had a full wedding weekend on January 27th of this year (our negative one year anniversary).  We went to dinner with both our parents at the reception site (A Different Pointe Of View).  The evening went well, and the next day was the wedding expo in downtown Phoenix.  After six hours of walking around to all the booths, we headed to lunch at the Hard Rock cafe and went home.  We have a lot of thinking to do about all the information we received.  We’ll keep everybody up to date as soon as we can!