Sneak Peak: Our Wedding Photography

Of course the wedding is over and the blog posts aren't as frequent, but I do plan on starting another blog with fun, insightful ideas to design and decorating whether it is for your home, or for your wedding! So stay tuned, and I will keep you posted of the new link. I am still taking a nice break from everything that has just passed. :)

However this blog isn't over and complete just yet. We have yet to see the professional pics shot by our photographer, Marcin Harla. I still have another 3-4 weeks before I get the proofs – darn it. But I can show you one sneak peak shot from our wedding day. I was just on his blog and happened to see it! Hopefully he will be posting more in the next few days.

More Wedding Day Pics

We got some more pictures from Hemal's cousin, Biraju. He really got some nice shots of the venue – the Rose Garden where the cocktail hour was and the ceiling of the reception hall of Hotel Baker.

His camera angle was from upstairs since that was where he was seated and he certainly caught some nice moments of my dad and I for the father & daughter dance and the son & mother dance.

On Our Honeymoon in Anguilla

We're on our dream honeymoon. The island of Anguilla is oh-so-beautiful. They have 33 pristine, white sandy beaches. We are in Maundays Bay at the Cap Juluca resort. We flew into St. Maarten and hitched a ride on a boat over to the 4 mile wide and 17 mile long island. The people are very friendly and accomodating. So far the trip is going very well. We have yet to explore the whole island. We are only on our 2nd day and we are essentially baking in the sun and relaxing.

Oh yes, I did get a haircut everyone. Forgot to mention that, but you can see that in the pictures. I chopped my hair off literally the day after our wedding. I have been wanting to cut it for over a year now. :)

See you Chicago people when we get back! Signing off for now – Mrs. Patel

June 12, 2009 – Our Wedding Day at Last!

Yes we are married, and I am officially Mrs. Patel! Our big day was a blast and according to our guests they had a wonderful time too! Our day couldn't have gone any smoother thanks to the help of our family and friends. Thank you all!

I know everyone is curious about pictures from our wedding day and so am I. I don't have the official wedding photography pics available from Marcin Harla yet, but I can pass along friends and family pics that have been forwarded to us. Here are just a few snapshots. The first one is of my dad and I walking down the ceremonial aisle. My dad looks great in his yellow tie.

Pinkesh & Jason (our spiritual advisor) way to ruin the formal stance we had going on! Don't all the boys look handsome on our day.

Our very first dance together as Mr. & Mrs. Patel was "At Last" by Etta James. It was a great song considering our journey together took only 10 years. :)

Again, these are only snapshots of our wedding day. Stay tuned for the awesome wedding shots from Marcin Harla. We saw a few as he was taking them, and we were quite impressed ourselves.

My Dad

Not many of you have seen current pics of my dad. Well here he is with Colonel Edward Baker at Hotel Baker. He has a smile like mine... or is it vice versa. :)

The Flowers Came – Spray Roses

As you all the know the slight drama last week were my yellow Ranunculus flowers that all died. However, I did get my replacement flowers – yellow and white Spray Roses. The white ones were for my bouquet.

As soon as we got them Thursday, June 11th, I put my mom and dad to work as I ran some errands. :) They weren't total slaves to me. I just had them trim the ends for now. Later on that night, the night before our big day, I made all 15 boutinierres and my mom made the 3 bouquets for the ceremony.

Aren't the flowers pretty and vibrant!

Getting Our Marriage License

I am a little behind on the blog postings so here is a recap of some of the events last week! I was way too busy to keep up. We have some free wifi at our resort, Cap Juluca in Anguilla, so I thought I would catch up.

Us getting our marriage license last Wednesday, June 10th!

My Mom

I was planning to give a live post yesterday with a picture of her coming through the sliding doors in the airport of when we first laid our eyes on her since it had been some 5 years since we last saw her. But as we all know, things never go according to plan thanks to Murphy's law.

The flight arrived on time, but going through immigration services always takes some time. We were waiting some 30-40 minutes before she came out. And then you know the hustle and bustle of the airport distracted us, and I didn't get that first snapshot. But I did get one in my car and here she is! A little tired, but very tan. She didn't sleep on the plane one bit.

Little did she know she had a long day ahead of her. We had to go shopping! And we did, and we got her a wedding outfit. It looks very nice and stylish of course. Only the best for my mom. Check her out on the day of our wedding. The whole outfit that she is rockin' is from Ann Taylor. :)

Almost Freaking Out!

OMG! I think I almost had an anxiety attack. First of all, I have been going to bed the last few nights really late since I seem to pass the time working on my wedding projects and before I know it, it's 1-2 a.m. in the morning. Well lucky me this morning, I get a 6 a.m. phone call interrupting my dead sleep, and it wasn't a good one.

It was a rep from the wholesale floral vendor that I ordered from, and she tells me "All the Yellow Ranunculus florals are dead." Of course, I was still half sleeping and didn't realize the enormity of the situation. And then I swear, my heart skipped a beat – no florals what-so-ever. Somehow all the flowers got fumigated?? to kill the insects I think. I have no clue why they did this, but they are done for and can't be revived.

I had to hang up the phone and rethink the situation and what to do now? What yellow florals? I had to do some research on my computer and see what yellow floral alternatives are out there. Surprisingly, I ended back up on the classic and oh-so-traditional rose. I am going with the Spray Rose however since the buds are much smaller, and it almost has a similar feel to the Yellow Ranunculus that I originally wanted. Hopefully, the fire has been put out and no more drastic 6 a.m. phone calls! We'll have to see. Only 3 more full days til our day! And it's also 3 more full days for things to go horribly wrong and become one of those wedding horror stories. :)

Today is the Day!

Not my wedding day, but the day that my mom finally returns from Thailand.

My sister drove-in yesterday, Sunday, from the Indianapolis area to be part of the welcoming committee; the welcoming committee is just her and I. :) It's going to be a hectic day today. We have to get my mom from the airport and then take her shopping. Ambitious I know considering jet lag. However, we need to get her a wedding outfit and get it altered in time if it needs to be!

I have some old pics of my mom, sister and I below that I took on my iPhone since I don't have a scanner yet. They may be a little fuzzed up. Wasn't my mom a stylish little lady back in her time?


That's me below with my mom way back in the day in Thailand!

Stay tuned for a live update photo of my mom coming home in the airport.

Weekend Update: Project Wedding!

Busy, busy ladies and gentlemen...

Let's see, I designed the wedding menu cards and cut all 120 of them on a nice efficient cutter. Excuse me, but some menu cards may be a little off centered, and I was trying to get to bed. This occurred at 1:00 a.m. on Sunday.

Wedding centerpiece sneak peak: Table Number Cards on the Main Centerpiece. You can almost see the final product! :) But not the full details just yet.

Find your table please. This is how the name card table is going to look. All alphabetized and ready to go. There are at least three ribbons dedicated to the "P" category. Thanks to all the Patels.

Going Down Memory Lane

Here are some old school pics of us back in the day...

The Ringbearer – Aryan

The ringbearer's attire is already to go! Nisha made his custom yellow tie that matches her dress and my sister's too. One more thing done. How cute is the little side pocket with the hankie. :)

Side Note: Nisha was up late doing this...she sent this pic to me at 1 a.m. in the morning. Crazy!

Saturday Morning – 6 days to go!

I am up early on the last Saturday morning before our wedding. I have a list of things to do before my mom comes into town Monday. I have my gourmet cup of coffee and all my paper laid out on things I need to get done!

My Mom is Coming Back Home!

Everyone has been asking me, "What about your Mom?" And in response, I have generally been on the DL about the topic since I didn't want to jinx it.Well, I can now say she's coming home! My sister and I finally got a green light from the U.S. Embassy in Thailand for her to come back to the U.S.

We booked her ticket, and she is due to arrive in the U.S. on Monday morning of next week. I can't believe she is going to be on U.S. soil, and we get to see her finally. It's been a long time as some of you know. I believe it has been 6 or 7 years; so much time has passed that I can't exactly remember. I don't always talk about my mom much, because I can get sorta sad on that topic. But now is the time to celebrate especially on our wedding day. :D

It's going to be a busy week next week getting my mom ready for the wedding. We still have to get her wedding attire...

A Saturday Morning Breakfast with the Fiance

This past Saturday morning I made a nice, heart-healthy breakfast for the Fiance. Egg white omelette with a slice of reduced-fat Colby Jack cheese over a piece of toasted whole wheat bread and a side of fresh mango. Just trying to keep him slim for the big day.

Also, check out our new silverware and dishes. Thanks to family and friends we have dishes and utensils. However, no place mats just yet; making due with paper towels. :)

Marcin Harla - Our Wedding Photographer

Awesome natural, candid shot by Marcin Harla. 10 days to go before he shoots our wedding! Can't wait to see our wedding day pics.