Champagne and Lodging

Well, it's almost Friday and Mike and I are planning to head on over to Iowa again to take care of some business. We still have so much to do...tonight we are going to make a list of the things we want to get done this weekend. One thing we will be doing is dragging our bums out of bed Sunday morning to have brunch at the Lodge in Bettendorf. We are also going to take a look at the rooms there to see if this is the hotel we will recommend people stay at. I myself would like to make my way to the Black Bear Lounge after our reception to enjoy some champagne and more dancing! Some other hotels we are thinking of are Stoneycreek Inn Moline, the Radisson Davenport, Holiday Inn Rock Island and the Isle of Capri Bettendorf. We are planning on getting a block of rooms once we decide which hotel we will suggest people stay at. That info will go out with the invites. Until then, the links for the hotels are below if you want to take a look!


http://lodgehotel1-px.trvlclick.com/

http://www.isleofcapricasinos.com/Rhythm_City/

http://www.stoneycreekinn.com/locations/index.cfm?LocationID=10

http://www.radissondavenport.com/home.aspx

http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/h/d/hi/1/en/hotel/RKIIL?&sitrackingid=9333216&sicreative=1075515497&sicontent=0&siclientid=1952&cm_mmc=Google-PS-HolidayInn-_-G+B-AmericasEast-_-IL-RockIsland-_-1075515497_holiday+inn+rock+island%7C-%7C100000000000001341356&gclid=CIuGppStwJICFSMLIgodB1jRXg

The Big "C"

Yes, the CAKE. Mike and I both love cake so this is another thing we are excited about. We've booked the baker and the cake ideas are in the works. Well, there is one minor snag... the dress comes back to bite me again. The baker likes to have images of the dress and flowers along with our ideas then ties all the elements together in the design. So, needless to say I am stalling a bit. This snag has not stopped me and my internet searches! No one will know until August 2 what the finshed product will be, but here are some cakes that I really like and Mike too :) I have an underlying theme running through my head...we'll see if I can pull it together!

Weekend Off

Mike and I took the weekend off from wedding stuff with the exception of 3-4 on Saturday. After a fun-filled morning of beer tasting at our beer brewing class it was off to Macy's Bridal Salon. My experience at Macy's was slightly different from some of the bridal boutiques I've been to. At Macy's I had saw no other brides to be, had my own fitting room and my own dress wench...just kidding! I explained to the sales associate what I was looking for and she brought the dresses to me. There was no searching through racks or displays of gowns which was nice but after about 12 dresses I realized I was not going to find it at Macy's. Funny thing is I keep going back to the first dress I tried on! Maybe next weekend!

Vintage vs. Vintage Inspired

I have always been drawn to vintage designs and the history behind these things. So, I decided to search for vintage wedding gowns during some "downtime" at work today. I have to say I found some pretty crazy dresses and I learned I am more of a vintage inspired type of gal, at least when it comes to dresses.

He had me at dendrobium orchids....

Thanks for all the comments! I'm so glad everyone is checking out the blog!

So, the last couple weeks have been a whirlwind. First deciding what time of year we wanted our wedding to take place during and then.. the actual year! I am learning why people take a year plus to plan their wedding but it can be done in a shorter time frame and things are looking good. Last weekend we were able to secure a lot of our vendors which has allowed for much more chill time this week!

So far we have our venue, cake baker, dj, photographer and florist! O, and mom's favorite the linen vendor :)

The highlight of this past weekend, for me, was working with the Damien from Milan Flower Gardens. I brought some of my ideas with me and he definetely saw my vision! Here are some pictures of flowers I like and a little sampling of what Damien the florist put together for me. Most of the flowers will be white, but there will be some accents of green and purple. My favorite is the center piece of all dendrobium orchids.

drawing of the ring

August 2, 2008 - The date!

After searching the Quad Cities high and low we found the perfect place for both our ceremony and reception. We were even able to book a Saturday this year which ended up being a real challenge! AUGUST 2, 2008!!!!

http://www.theabbeyhotel.com/


Above is a link to the Abbey Hotel where our ceremony will take place. We are crossing our fingers that the weather will be beautiful so we can have an outdoor ceremony in the gardens at the hotel. If there is rain, as our florist has predicted based on the Farmer's Almanac, there is a beautiful chapel in the hotel. On the site you will also find the link to the Abbey Station, a beautiful, historic train depot where the reception will be!

We are both so excited and will be posting updates on here regularly. In the next few weeks we will have hotel options posted for those who will be traveling. The Abbey Hotel is about a ten minute drive from the Station so we are not recommending you stay there. We have a certain hotel with a certain lounge singer in mind... hopefully we can get a block of rooms!