"Call the planner" mode

With only 4 more days until the wedding, Marc and I are freeing ourselves from a majority of the planning and problem solving and happily handing over the responsibility to our wedding planner.  We have made all necessary payments and have tips set aside for the vendors, completed the details of the ceremony & reception, and have designated what needs to go to the rehearsal and to the hotel.  If any problems arise, we have told everyone to call the planner! lol Marc and I are going to enjoy the last few days of being engaged as much as we can. The only thing I have to do tomorrow is pick up my wedding dress and buy gifts for the little people who are in our wedding party =D Anything else need to be done? Call the planner!

I still can't believe how fast a year and a half flew by... I can still remember when Marc proposed to me on the beautiful sandy beach of Maui in May 2011.  And now, we're getting married on Sunday!

We can't wait to see everyone at the wedding!  And please do your best to dress according to our wedding theme so we can witness exactly what we have envisioned <3

Pre-Wedding Photobooth Fun!

If any of you are interested in participating and writing us a little note to display on a screen at the wedding, please read the instructions below =)  They're due on August 30th by noon.

ALSO! You can take pictures on your phone during the ceremony/reception and e-mail them, and it will all be displayed on the screen as well! Pretty nifty....

Dear Guests,

    Eiffel and Marc are very excited to present to you, the opportunity to interact at their wedding reception in a whole new way.

    Featured at their wedding will be two 42inch displays showing all of the fun candid photos taken from your phone! To kick things off, please begin taking pictures at their ceremony and submit them right away to EMY@mobibooth.com. (Details on this below)
    **NEW FEATURE** Help us make their reception memorable, fun and unique!
We are requesting you (the guests) to send an e-mail with an 18
word (maximum) memento intended to be displayed during their reception to EMY@mobibooth.com and include in the subject MARC AND EIFFEL'S WEDDING.

    Example: Hoping today is the best day of your lives,
Love,
Mom & Dad

    Please be sure to include your names! (If applicable, please include
relation, ex: Uncle Bill & Aunt Sue) & put in the subject: Marc and Eiffel's wedding

Remember: all text mementos must be submitted by 8-30-12 by noon. Any
submissions past this deadline will not be made available for display, we
apologize in advance.

    Additionally, please brush up on your camera phone skills! Eiffel and Marc are asking you to take as many fun candid moments throughout their ceremony AND reception then TEXT OR EMAIL them to this address (EMY@mobibooth.com)for immediate display to share with everyone during their reception, so keep this email address handy!
  
    Please EMAIL photo's whenever possible for the best image/viewing quality.

    We appreciate your participation in making Eiffel and Marc’s wedding a
huge success and we hope you enjoy yourselves!


Thank you,

The staff of Mobi Booth.
www.mobibooth.com

2 1/2 more weeks left!

We obviously suck at updating our blog LOL!  These last few months have been CRAZY busy.  Since our last post, I went to San Diego with my bridesmaids for my bachelorette party in May, Marc went to his bachelor party in Vegas with his groomsmen, had 2 wedding showers, and moved to Chicago the beginning of July. Marc and I are finishing up the last few details of the wedding and we will be ready!  Now that I've listed everything, I can't believe how much time has flown...

This last month has especially been very difficult for me.  It has been a huge emotional rollercoaster and trying my best to stay sane during the ride.  I'm so grateful to those who have made time to help me relax and vent.  Even if it has been a simple phone call, text, or e-mail, it has helped me enormously!  Super stressed, but hey... it could have been like this the ENTIRE year and half engagment.  Glad it's only been the last couple of months.  Marc has been extremely helpful during the process.  His ability to see the good in everything has been keeping me optimistic with our upcoming wedding and all the other crazy stuff going on in my life.  I am truly BLESSED.  Although it has been stressful, Marc and I have been enjoying our engagement and last few days of being able to call each other fiance(e) :)

Marc and I have been staying focused on the importance of all of this: our marriage.  Although the details of the wedding are important and pretty much making my head spin a thousand different ways, we continue to remind ourselves that our declaration of our love and commitment towards each other is what matters at the end.  People get so caught up with making their special day as perfect as possible that they forget that their vows is the only thing that is of true significance.  So I'm not going to let all these details get the best of me for mine and Marc's sanity :P

With that said, Marc and I are now going to enjoy a glass of wine and a few episode of Grey's Anatomy.  Can't wait to see everyone on our big day!! (Just in case I don't update this again... hehe)

Destination E-Shoot at Washington, DC



"What's the skyline like at Washington, DC?"



This is DC's skyline lol

I laughed so hard when Marc asked me this on the way to DC.  I love taking him to places he's never been to before... especially historical places.  Since we needed to get our engagement shoot done with our wedding photographer, we decided that it would be fun to meet our photographer at DC (where he's from) and celebrate Marc's birthday all within the same weekend.  We're so glad we did it, and we're hoping to visit again so we can go to the museums that we missed out on AND see the monuments at night since it rained on Saturday evening. 

Before I get into my Top 5 tips for traveling to DC and Top 5 tips for engagement shoots, I wanted to give a special shout out to our wedding photographer, Gabe Aceves.  He was so kind enough to move our engagement shoot to Sunday since Saturday was gloomy and rainy.  Sunday ended up being sunny, beautiful, and a perfect day for an E-shoot AND for Marc's birthday!  I was so thrilled it worked out because my outfits were definitely not rain proof!  I learned so much about our photographer within 2 hours of what seemed like hanging out and walking around in the city with a friend rather than an E-shoot.  Super cool and talented guy!  Gabe, thanks for showing us showing us around and we are stoked that the beauty of DC will be in our engagement photos and that we get the privilege of you being the mastermind behind the photos! We're looking forward to seeing you on September 2nd for the BIG DAY!

5 Tips for Traveling to Washington, DC

1. Don't rent a car.  First, driving in DC is impossible with the huge round-abouts with 8 different exits! Second, all of the monuments, museums, memorials, the White House, the Capitol, etc... all in the same vicinity and walking distance.  Third, parking is a beotch and hella expensive.
2. Bring walking shoes. Walking is all you will be doing.  Might as well be comfortable.
3. If you know someone from DC, have them be your tour guide and show you what you must see and what you must eat.  Also, less likely for you to get lost.  If anything, ask others who have been to give you some ideas.
4. When visiting the memorials, treat it as it is... A place to remember and honor the people who lost their lives for our country.  Don't just walk by and say you've done it; look at the names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial wall, study the soldiers' faces at the Korean War Memorial, understand the meaning of all the symbols at the World War II Memorial, etc... It will give you a better perspective and appreciation.
5. There are park rangers that do free guided tours, or there is a phone number posted at the memorial to call and you will get a guided tour over the phone!  By the way, a majority of the Smithsonian Museums are FREE!

5 Tip for Engagement Shoots

1. Don't be too matchy because it's just plain out cheesy. Marc and I did different shades of blue for our outfits.  One of my outifts was a little bit louder, so Marc toned it down by wearing a gray sweater. 
2. Gabe told us not to wear anything baggy; fitted clothes look better in photos.  Good to know!
3. Gabe also told us to wear something that represents our own style.  This also has to do with the make up and hair. Don't try to be someone you're not.
4. Don't be nervous.  It will show in the pictures.  DO relax and enjoy the moment!
5. Get to know your photographer!  When you're comfortable with your photographer, then you will look comfortable and natural in the pictures. Once the wedding comes along, then it will be just like meeting up with an old friend you haven't seen in a while =)

White House... obviously :P

Yap Stone from Island of Yap!

Fob Alert!

Marc and I wanted to get a picture of us sitting on Lincoln's lap... but we decided that we didn't want to get arrested :P

 

Flaming Volcano!  We were good for the rest of the night after this drink!



Marc's "Black and Blue" beer at DCA for his birthday!

The end of our DC trip, but ready for our next adventure!

Best part of wedding planning...

Besides the whole mushy gushy stuff of planning the day you will marry your other half... the best part of planning a wedding/least stressful is THE FOOD TASTE TESTING at your reception venue! Marc and I had been waiting for this event for months!  Our venue made the event all romantic for us.  I almost forgot that we had to make the difficult decision on what was our favorite since it was all so scrumptious. We met the head chef who happened to be one of my mom's good friends/the mother of one of my best friends from high school!  Very small world.

Marc and I were so funny.  We chowed down and made so many mmmm... and omg so good.... remarks that we made sure to save a little bit of each meat for the end so we could compare the tastes.  (Of course, Marc got caught up with the view outside and had so many ideas on pictures we could take during the tasting).  We finally made the decision of the meats, then we had to decide on the vegatables, starches, salad, dressing, and wine.   I can't wait until Tammy makes the appointment for cake tasting with the bakery!!



LOL!  This is Marc and me after the tasting... we felt like fattys.

On a more personal note, the 5 month mark has been the most stressful month for me so far.  At 6 months, it was like "hey, half a year until the wedding! Woo!" And then 5 months is like, "holy crap... it's right around the corner and there's still so much to do!"   That's when it hits that the wedding is really happening.  Before, it was just an image in my mind.  Now, everything has come to fruition and it became REAL. There are so many little details that need to be prepared that it can get overwhelming.  I've already openly told Tammy twice that I was having a freak out moment. 

Tammy's advice: Relax, Relate, Release.... Wooosahhhh.

I know it sounds funny, and it was!  The small laughter I had when I read that text helped my mood in so many ways. First, I realized that I was being ridiculous.  Second, it reminded me to take a deep breath.  Third, I remembered that everything was seriously under control.  I know I'll have more freak out moments, but I think I'll snap out of it faster than the last two... hopefully... for Marc's sanity ;)

In 9 days, Marc and I will be on a plane heading to Washington D.C. for our engagement shoot with Gabe Aceves and a celebration for Marc's birthday! We are definitely looking forward to meeting our talented wedding photographer, the photos, and enjoying D.C.!  Toodles everyone!

ENJOYING wedding planning... All thanks to TAMMY!

Most girls have had a vision of their dream wedding since they were a young girl.  For me, I didn't start thinking of what my wedding might look like until the day I got engaged and had no clue what was involved in the process.  For those of you who know me well, I like doing things myself because it's hard for me to trust others to complete tasks either on time or correctly.  So when Marc asked me if I would consider a planner, my first response was, "pshh! I got this! I've planned a bunch of events!  What could be so different!?"

Within the first couple of months, I was stressed, freaking out, cross eyed from researching online for hours, growing pimples the size of Mount Everest, etc... on top of work stress, personal stress, and trying to not take everything out on Marc.  So when my co-worker told me that his wife, Tammy, was a wedding planner, I convinced myself and Marc to at least meet her.  After the meeting, we instantly hired her.  We would have been idiotic if we didn't.

Blah blah blah, so Marc has mentioned some of this in a previous post. But today during the hair trial with the stylist we're hiring, I learned so much about Tammy and how she got into the business which made me appreciate her so much more.  I mentioned to our sylist that we didn't want a videographer, but Tammy persuaded us into getting one.  Then Tammy told me about her personal experience.  She was young when she got married.  Therefore, she didn't really know what she wanted.  They ended up hiring a videographer that was a pervert where a lot of the shots were, and I quote, "a lot of women's tadonkedonks."  Despite that, she is able to look at the video and see people on video that are not alive today.  Also, her father now has a bad leg.  During the wedding, she is able to see her father walking perfectly as he walked her down the aisle.  That is the reason why she wants to make sure we have video of our special day because of how special her wedding video is to her.

Because Tammy would have done a lot of things different on her wedding day (i.e. different videographer), she became a wedding planner because she wanted to make sure other brides did not have to go through some of the things she went through.  She wanted every bride to have "her perfect wedding."  She is so creative, has a lot of connections, she treats our money like it's her own money in order for us to save as much as possible (she refuses to pay anything at full price), is open and honest with me and Marc, AND she is just as excited for the big day as us! She has plain out told me that I can contact her at ANY TIME if I start stressing out about the wedding or if I am unsure about anything.  That has been so reassuring. One time she called me and her words were exactly what I needed to hear that she got me in freakin' tears!

Like I've told Tammy, when she's excited, I get super excited.  And Tammy says, "Happy bride means happy planner!"

So today, we have hired my stylist and know what my hair and the bridesmaids' hair will look like. Shout out to my line sister/one of my best friends/bridesmaid CANDICE for driving out to Bolingbrook to get her hair styled 5 different ways! You are such a trooper. Thank you, and I love you!  Tomorrow, we get to meet a wedding designer that could potentially design our entire reception.  Spring will take part in that extravanganza and I'm looking forward to it!

As of Monday, April 2nd, only 5 more months until the wedding!!!!

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day to Everyone!

I hope that everyone got to have fun and spend time with the ones they loved!

Eiffel and I this year got to spend extra time with each other earlier than usual for Valentine's day.  Because Eiffel and I currently live an hour away from each other, we decided to celebrate Valentine's day early this past Saturday the 11th.


We celebrated by going to Chicago Prime Steakhouse and having a great dinner there!  I had last taken Eiffel to Chicago Prime when we were in our first two months of dating.  This time around was a lot easier to for the both of us, as we've gotten to know each other better and there was a more comfortable atmosphere between the two of us.  It let us relax and have more fun and crack more jokes this time around =D

Some pictures from dinner:

Eiffel and I enjoying a glass of wine before we left for the restaurant =)

Us at dinner where the waiter got to snap a picture of us!

After dinner, we didn't make any plans so we got to meet up with Eiffel's friend Candice and her boyfriend and spend time catching up with them in downtown Algonquin.  It was a nice, relaxed and very enjoyable night!

Eiffel and Candice got to have fun also on the dancefloor!  I don't have any picture or videos of that, though now that I think of it,  I totally should have recorded the two of them "Stepping" to R. Kelly.

Maybe next Valentine's day =)

-Marc

Meet The Wedding Planner!

If you remember this post, Eiffel and I were excited to have made probably the smartest decision about the wedding.  It took a lot of pressure off of us, our schedule and gave both of us sanity with regards to planning the wedding.

If that last statement wasn't enough of a hint, I'll put it out in the open:  We got a wedding planner!  To briefly explain things, Eiffel's co-worker is married to a wedding planner, so after hearing about this Eiffel and I decided that it wouldn't hurt to speak and learn more about what they do.  We met up with Tammy no too long after and we knew it was a match that was meant to be.

Since making the decision to work with Tammy, we have have gotten more sleep, less stress and the bags under my eyes have entirely disappeared!

Meeting with Tammy, she gave the impression of knowledge and wisdom with regards to planning events, and she was just a pleasure to meet and work with.  Having her act as an advocate and planner for us, she told us that from the beginning of the day to the end of the day we would need to do NOTHING but relax while she took care of all the details.

For guys in general, I would have to say that I'm an exception with regard to knowing how a wedding works since I'm a wedding photographer by trade, but being on the other side and planning out every detail of the big day was something that I didn't fully appreciate until I got to this side of the equation.  Knowing that Tammy will be there to work with us has been reassuring and will definitely allow us to focus on other things for the wedding day.  Something Eiffel and I are so incredibly thankful for.

Ok so that was the first revelation, here's the 2nd one.

Part of what Tammy asked of us was to gather entire wedding party together to meet with her, get to know her and for her to get to know them.  Let me tell you, setting up a meeting for 17+ people and trying to coordinate so many schedules is quite trying.  I was just happy to be able to have everyone meet for one hour.  I don't know how Tammy does it for a living!


Now here's something that I want to recommend for everyone if they need to coordinate a meeting with people that are not in town....

Use Google Plus Hangouts

Coordinating the meeting wasn't just about getting everyone within the area to meet at one location and one time.  We had to deal with people that were out of state as well.  My sister lives in California, one of Eiffel's cousins lives in Colorado, Another lives in California also, and two people lived over an hour away from the meeting location.

With hangouts from Google Plus we were able to set up a mass meeting online for everyone so that they could see and hear and interact with Tammy while she was giving the same presentation to us.  It worked seamlessly and some of the people from out of town were able to ask and have their questions answered from Tammy at the same time we were asking questions!


The meeting went incredibly well!  People that came to the meeting not knowing exactly what to do were able to walk out confident that anything that they had questions on or needed would be taken care of by Tammy.  I personally remember that I had little idea of what I was supposed to do when I was a best man for my best friend's wedding.  Tammy was reassuring, confident, and on top of everything during the meeting and it helped to calm everyone's nerves.

With the first major meeting of the year down and in the books, everyone felt relieved and Tammy will coordinate with eveyrone via email about what's to come in the next few months.

It's only 8 months away from our wedding.  I can hardly believe that!  And with time flying so quickly I look forward to standing in the aisle and seeing Eiffel walk down it this September 2nd.

=)

Finally... OUR WEDDING YEAR!

As soon as 2012 came at midnight of January 1st, that's when Marc and I realized that we're getting married SOON and things are going to be happening FAST.  As of this month, we are officially halfway through our engagement. Freakin' insane! We're nervous because we are well aware of how hectic things will get soon, but we are incredibly thrilled to just. be. married.

With the new year also comes the improved Eiffel of 2012 =)  Every day, I learn more and more about Marc and the intricacies of how he reacts to certain circumstances whether positive or negative.  And I'm slowly but surely making adjustments to make sure he is getting what he needs as my partner rather than being selfish and expecting him to always cater to my needs and forgetting about his.  I've shared with Marc that I'm working on this, and he has been 110% supportive.  Whenever he notices that I bite my tongue, lend an ear rather than attempt to fix his problems, take a deep breath instead of allowing my emotions to take over, giving him the time he needs to think things over, refraining from being a backseat driver, etc... Marc is so great about recognizing it and applauding me for making positive changes. You would think that this stuff would be easy for me since I'm trained in counseling, but a client vs. a fiance is so different. But I will do my best to transfer the counseling/listening skills I learned from school into my relationship.  We'll see how that goes ;)  

Back to wedding stuff... thanks to the help of Marc's sister, I have finalized the bridesmaid dresses!  The best thing about the dress is that it's affordable and comfortable! That only means that my bridesmaids have no excuses to not be on the dance floor the entire wedding night!! And I'm so serious about that statement =P  Then we'll be moving onto finding the shoes for me and the bridesmaids and a dress for my flower girls. We're still searching for our videographer and DJ.  Those are the only vendors we haven't hired yet.  Then I'll be asking some aunts and uncles to be sponsors/ninongs/ninangs for me and Marc by this weekend.  That just sounded like one jumbled paragraph.  Eh. Anyways....

CHEERS to 2012... a year to GET MARRIED!!!

Our first picture of 2012 :) Happy New Year everyone!