Tuesday, November 19, 2013

How to Plan a Gay Wedding in 2 Months




We looked around the room. Eric and I could see the left over Chipotle, tasty left over cake, wine, "empty chairs and empty tables", and a few guests that had stayed behind. In what seemed like the blink of an eye, our wedding day was drawing to a close. So much time and creative energy was spent to bring about our cherished day. Did we feel satisfied? We sure did! 

Planning only began in mid September. With the wedding day on November 17th, we heard many say we were crazy. Eric and I, being a little stubborn, were determined to carry out our wedding prior to our upcoming Disney World trip, December 2nd. It did cross our level headed minds to wait one more week December 1st, but that is Thanksgiving weekend. So, that was a "No". 

Eric and I had an idea of what we wanted, but budget, location, and timing would play a huge role. And, when I say we knew what we wanted, I meant we had about four ideas between us. Did that cause some arguments along the way? Of course it did! Do you all think a smaller wedding made planning any easier? No, not at all. Later, when the decor fell into place, it felt perfect.  

A hard subject when one has a small wedding or event is the Guest List. When we decided to keep it at 50 and under, I assumed that was a good amount. Well, when we started listing names the slots filled quickly. Hard decisions were made and looking back, I don't think we even disagreed about the list. Once a number was decided, it definitely was understood between us that we had to be strict. 

Right away we had some family members that stepped up, without hesitation. My cousin Albert and wife Clara really wanted to purchase the cake. We were blown away by the gesture. Then, his sister and my cousin, Francesca, offered food money, and to create our "card receiving" box. We also had both Mothers offer to lend a huge hand in many different ways. Ricky, Eric's best man, allowed us to hold the wedding at his place. And, our great friend Cassie would be our photographer for both our wedding guest book, and the event itself. I can honestly say without our family and friends' generosity, this wouldn't have happened.

One item we quickly crossed off our list was the cake. Eric, my mom, and myself headed to Glendale for the cake tasting at the bakery Portos. They had about 12-16 different combinations for us. The red velvet was tempting, but lately it's almost too expected. We made up our own cake combination of white and chocolate cake, layered with vanilla custard. Eric and I couldn't wait for everyone to taste it!

During October, the details changed, shapes evolved and themes came and went . Would we have round tables or rectangular?  Something that drove me insane was that even though I could envision the space, I wanted to see the final product and experience it. Thank goodness the catering company was a "no brainer" for the both of us. We chose to go with Chipotle catering because it's our favorite. The spread we went with was the three meat taco bar. They would also throw in a few different salsas and chips with guacamole.

Suddenly time was creeping toward October 17th. This meant we absolutely had to send out the invitations. We just needed to decide on the style we liked. I have to be honest, the idea of sending out a massive text message did cross our minds. Don't worry, we got rid of that idea.


After invitations, the first photo shoot was upon us. As I mentioned before, our great friend Cassie would take our photos. She went with us to Disneyland and California Adventure in the wee hours of a Monday morning. Eric and I would be posing for our Guest Book. Eric had the idea to have photos where our guests could sign the borders, and write short messages. It was such a fun morning in the parks. Cassie is amazing at what she does. Check out Russek Photography on Facebook! 



(I don't rely on mirrors alone...they're deceiving)

It was an experience trying on suits for the big day. To be frank, we did encounter frustration as we shopped. Since we loved the first suits we tried on, it was hard to settle on anything else. Maybe a guy would usually think, "Hey it's no biggie." But for us it was really important. There was no wedding dress to be featured at this wedding ceremony. Eric and I were it and we wanted to look as good as possible. Once we finalized the suits, I felt stress levels slightly lower. 


 With exactly two weeks left, Eric, his parents, Ricky, Greg, and I got to work. Poor Ricky was "losing" his living room. We cleared it all out in that one afternoon. The sofa, tables, lamps, and shelf all ended up in his spare room. Ricky was left with the floor to sit on, and a TV. So when I say we couldn't have done it without Ricky, it's the truth. 

The plan was to then return to the following Sunday, which was a week from the wedding, to get even more prepared. When that day came, Eric then brought the backdrop for our ceremony. He made it that week from plywood, chalkboard paint, and of course chalk. He spent almost five hours getting this piece just right. 


Whoa, what a blog post, right? I want to keep all of your interest so I'll be back soon with a heck of a lot more photos and the wedding details. I can't give it all at once! And, if you were there, then I guess you know all the secrets. I will add that our daydream was becoming a reality. See all back soon!

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