Just got off the phone with the community center. They are booked every Saturday from May until October with the exception of July 18 and September 19. So that means our date, is not available :( She said she has every Friday in August open except Aug. 14, but I'd probably have too many complaints about a Friday wedding. We could do July 18, but it could be 90+ degrees then...
I had her take my name and number in case she got a cancellation, but I probably shouldn't hold my breath.
Crap.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Wedding progress
Hello- time for my weekly post :)
We are starting to actually progress with our wedding planning. We met with a photog this past Friday, but he's a no go. For one, he's pretty pricey, and two- he emailed me later that day to say sorry but he just received a deposit for our date. I think I posted about him before, he's Chad Bosma. But, we found another one, that we are REALLY hoping stays open for Aug. 15, 2009. (Yes, that is still the date we are looking at- it will be official once we talk to the reception site people, more on that in a bit) Any hoo- the new photog is Cindy Palmbos. From what I've heard on theknot.com, she's fairly new to wedding photography, but from what I've seen on her site, she's pretty darn good. And a WHOLE LOT cheaper than the other guy we were looking at. If you go on her page and to the gallery, she has 2 options of weddings that she has shot. Or, you can go to her blog. That is actually where I first saw her work. A girl on theknot.com posted the link to the blog, because there was a preview of her pictures. If you scroll down to Aug. 28- Rebecca and Dave, those are the pictures I saw first, and I LOVE them. I think they are really good.
Here are the 2 packages we are looking at:
They are basically a difference of whether or not we want the pictures printed, or just all on cd. Package 4 has both pics on cd and printed pics, Package 3 just has pics on cd and we'd print them ourselves. Still haven't decided which package we'd choose. But, we are meeting with Cindy on Thursday.
Now, for the locations. So, we've decided to just do a beach wedding. We'll have a handful of chairs for immediate family and grand parents, then just have everyone else stand. We are going to keep a tent rental company in mind just in case the weather starts to look bad. Hey, we decided if it gets real bad, we'll just go to our reception site and everyone can just sit down and watch us get married. Steph I know you've been to the beach that we are going to, I think Allison has too, but I don't remember. Anyway, it will be way to the left of where the lighthouse, pier, boardwalk, etc. is. It will be to the left of a restaurant called Bill Mar. Everytime Scott and I have been there- be it 4th of July or Coast Guard Festival, this part of the beach is always dead. Everyone always congragates near the State Park, and pier. So I think we have that fact on our side. A negative, is parking. It's ALWAYS parking. Grand Haven is notorious for horrible parking near the beach. It's extremely limited. So, our thought is we have people park at the reception site (i swear, info on that is coming...) then we'd rent a trolley. Grand Haven has trolleys that take tours of the area. We are looking at renting a trolley that will drive people back and forth. The trolley can drop people off in the parking lot of the restaurant (it will be undergoing construction, and will be closed down next summer) then people can just walk to where we will be, there is a side walk so it won't be trudging through the sand.
Here are a few pictures of the area of the beach we will probably be:
There is a little path in between 2 dunes, I figure we don't even have to go down to the water, just have it in here somewhere.
If you click this picture to enlarge it, you can see how far we'd be away from the light house, and all the people. The beach way to the right, that is where everyone goes.
Can you tell it's the off season?? And it was a gorgeous day today. Echo Echo.... This is why we really should do it in September, but 1) there is too much going on in September and 2) all the kiddos will be going to school. I can't really expect people to travel this far when it's not summer vacation.
This is a little closer to the restaurant, it's a lot more open. Also a possibility, but I really like the natural decorations of all that dune grass in the spot before.
The building to the right is the Bil Mar restaurant.
This is the first spot I stopped at. Because of all the grass, it's kind of cut off from the rest of the beach, which would be good. But it's also a bit of a climb, as you can see. So this is probably a no, but it is a great view!
------------------------------------------------------------
And now, on to the reception site. We are looking at the Grand Haven Community Center. It's about a 3-5 min drive from the beach. On that website, their is a photo gallery link at the top right. Their Mackinaw Ballroom is beautiful and they don't have a caterer we have to use. It's $600 and includes the use of the room from 6pm- midnight, includes tables, chairs a dance floor, and use of their catering kitchen. (It's $700 if you are serving alcohol, but we have no intention of doing that.) Scott and I just went there today. We thought it would be closed, being Sunday and all- but the doors were opened so we took a little tour. It's gorgeous inside, Scott was even impressed with the bathrooms! lol But, I'm calling them tomorrow to make sure our date is still free, then we'll probably get that booked. Then I can send out Save the Date magnets :)
This is the hallway just outside the ballroom.
These are the entrance doors to the ballroom.
We couldn't find the light switch, so these are a bit dark. But they had some tables set up. There would be the lead table in the middle. Then these are off to the right.
The dance floor, they had it in the middle.
And tables to the left.
Now for the last detail we've been discussing. We know we've had quite a few people offer to cook food, and we might go that route- but we've also been seriously considering a caterer. You have to take a look at that link. Their displays are beautiful and their prices seem pretty reasonable to me too. We are looking at their Economy cookout or Economy Roast option under Outdoor receptions. But, we'd have to see if it has to be outside. We would love to have our reception outside, but there are just too many unknowns that come with doing that. Numero uno being Mother Nature. But, yeah if you look at that page, you will want us to cater our reception too. A couple other things to look at on that page, their lighted ice punch bowls, the options under station creations and fruit displays! The ice bowl we probably won't do, the station creations are an option (we love the panini station, pasta station and salad in a martini glass! lol), and the fruit display is awesome! Especially the one on the home page.
Ok, I think thats all. So, since pretty much the only visitors to my blog are the bridesmaids and mom, please- tell me what you think! (Mom you are ok on the photog, as we've already talked about it.) But Ally, Steph? What do you think?
Oh- I forgot to add, we've decided we will probably get our engagement pictures taken downtown GR, we really like it down there- there are a lot of good photo opportunities, and since wedding pics will be beach, engagement pics can be urban! :)
We are starting to actually progress with our wedding planning. We met with a photog this past Friday, but he's a no go. For one, he's pretty pricey, and two- he emailed me later that day to say sorry but he just received a deposit for our date. I think I posted about him before, he's Chad Bosma. But, we found another one, that we are REALLY hoping stays open for Aug. 15, 2009. (Yes, that is still the date we are looking at- it will be official once we talk to the reception site people, more on that in a bit) Any hoo- the new photog is Cindy Palmbos. From what I've heard on theknot.com, she's fairly new to wedding photography, but from what I've seen on her site, she's pretty darn good. And a WHOLE LOT cheaper than the other guy we were looking at. If you go on her page and to the gallery, she has 2 options of weddings that she has shot. Or, you can go to her blog. That is actually where I first saw her work. A girl on theknot.com posted the link to the blog, because there was a preview of her pictures. If you scroll down to Aug. 28- Rebecca and Dave, those are the pictures I saw first, and I LOVE them. I think they are really good.
Here are the 2 packages we are looking at:
#3 $750
Engagement session with 24 4x6 proofs
Unlimited Coverage
Photojournalism of the day
Formal Portraits before or after the wedding
Ceremony and Reception Coverage.
2 Photographers
approx. 350 proofs on CD with copyright privileges
#4 $1000
Engagement session with 36 4x6 proofs
Unlimited Coverage
Photojournalism of the day
Formal Portraits Before or after the wedding
Ceremony and Reception Coverage
2 Photographers
approx. 400 4x6 printed proofs
Proofs on CD with copyright privileges
$50 credit on portrait prints.
They are basically a difference of whether or not we want the pictures printed, or just all on cd. Package 4 has both pics on cd and printed pics, Package 3 just has pics on cd and we'd print them ourselves. Still haven't decided which package we'd choose. But, we are meeting with Cindy on Thursday.
Now, for the locations. So, we've decided to just do a beach wedding. We'll have a handful of chairs for immediate family and grand parents, then just have everyone else stand. We are going to keep a tent rental company in mind just in case the weather starts to look bad. Hey, we decided if it gets real bad, we'll just go to our reception site and everyone can just sit down and watch us get married. Steph I know you've been to the beach that we are going to, I think Allison has too, but I don't remember. Anyway, it will be way to the left of where the lighthouse, pier, boardwalk, etc. is. It will be to the left of a restaurant called Bill Mar. Everytime Scott and I have been there- be it 4th of July or Coast Guard Festival, this part of the beach is always dead. Everyone always congragates near the State Park, and pier. So I think we have that fact on our side. A negative, is parking. It's ALWAYS parking. Grand Haven is notorious for horrible parking near the beach. It's extremely limited. So, our thought is we have people park at the reception site (i swear, info on that is coming...) then we'd rent a trolley. Grand Haven has trolleys that take tours of the area. We are looking at renting a trolley that will drive people back and forth. The trolley can drop people off in the parking lot of the restaurant (it will be undergoing construction, and will be closed down next summer) then people can just walk to where we will be, there is a side walk so it won't be trudging through the sand.
Here are a few pictures of the area of the beach we will probably be:
There is a little path in between 2 dunes, I figure we don't even have to go down to the water, just have it in here somewhere.
If you click this picture to enlarge it, you can see how far we'd be away from the light house, and all the people. The beach way to the right, that is where everyone goes.
Can you tell it's the off season?? And it was a gorgeous day today. Echo Echo.... This is why we really should do it in September, but 1) there is too much going on in September and 2) all the kiddos will be going to school. I can't really expect people to travel this far when it's not summer vacation.
This is a little closer to the restaurant, it's a lot more open. Also a possibility, but I really like the natural decorations of all that dune grass in the spot before.
The building to the right is the Bil Mar restaurant.
This is the first spot I stopped at. Because of all the grass, it's kind of cut off from the rest of the beach, which would be good. But it's also a bit of a climb, as you can see. So this is probably a no, but it is a great view!
------------------------------------------------------------
And now, on to the reception site. We are looking at the Grand Haven Community Center. It's about a 3-5 min drive from the beach. On that website, their is a photo gallery link at the top right. Their Mackinaw Ballroom is beautiful and they don't have a caterer we have to use. It's $600 and includes the use of the room from 6pm- midnight, includes tables, chairs a dance floor, and use of their catering kitchen. (It's $700 if you are serving alcohol, but we have no intention of doing that.) Scott and I just went there today. We thought it would be closed, being Sunday and all- but the doors were opened so we took a little tour. It's gorgeous inside, Scott was even impressed with the bathrooms! lol But, I'm calling them tomorrow to make sure our date is still free, then we'll probably get that booked. Then I can send out Save the Date magnets :)
This is the hallway just outside the ballroom.
These are the entrance doors to the ballroom.
We couldn't find the light switch, so these are a bit dark. But they had some tables set up. There would be the lead table in the middle. Then these are off to the right.
The dance floor, they had it in the middle.
And tables to the left.
Now for the last detail we've been discussing. We know we've had quite a few people offer to cook food, and we might go that route- but we've also been seriously considering a caterer. You have to take a look at that link. Their displays are beautiful and their prices seem pretty reasonable to me too. We are looking at their Economy cookout or Economy Roast option under Outdoor receptions. But, we'd have to see if it has to be outside. We would love to have our reception outside, but there are just too many unknowns that come with doing that. Numero uno being Mother Nature. But, yeah if you look at that page, you will want us to cater our reception too. A couple other things to look at on that page, their lighted ice punch bowls, the options under station creations and fruit displays! The ice bowl we probably won't do, the station creations are an option (we love the panini station, pasta station and salad in a martini glass! lol), and the fruit display is awesome! Especially the one on the home page.
Ok, I think thats all. So, since pretty much the only visitors to my blog are the bridesmaids and mom, please- tell me what you think! (Mom you are ok on the photog, as we've already talked about it.) But Ally, Steph? What do you think?
Oh- I forgot to add, we've decided we will probably get our engagement pictures taken downtown GR, we really like it down there- there are a lot of good photo opportunities, and since wedding pics will be beach, engagement pics can be urban! :)
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Wedding Expo
Scott and I went to a Wedding Expo that was downtown! It was actually a lot of fun! Scott got to try a lot of food, I tried a few things.. but most were desserts- probably had dairy. Coldstone Creamery was there giving out samples, I think Scott had like 3. lol It was cool though I was talking to some makeup lady and Scott asked some bakery people if they did dairy free cakes, they said no- but had a recommendation of people they think might. So now we have 2 options! 1 is in Grand Rapids and the other is in Grand Haven. Yay for options!
They had quite a few photogs there. Unfortunately, they were all WAY out of our budget- I'm talking packages starting at $3,000!!! But we have a couple we still have in mind for them too.
We are still stuck on a ceremony/reception site. We have a possibility that we are going to visit tomorrow. I don't want to say what it is, and get my hopes up. They are pretty expensive and had quite a few people on the list for summer dates ahead of us. But, we will go tomorrow and see what happens. If it looks like it might work out, I'll post more details then. The site is $3,000- but that is for 9 am- midnight, it's on Lake Michigan and includes the use of a dining room, the large deck outside (for the ceremony), a kitchen and a conference room. They don't require you to use their caterer and we have an idea for that! When we worked at Fresh Food at GVSU, we knew some people who worked as chefs there- Sue and Katy, they are mother and daughter. They told us forever ago that whenever we get married they want to cater our reception. We completely forgot about that until Scott started working there again. Sue was asking him how we were, then asked if we got married yet. Scott said no and she said- good because you said we could cater your reception! After talking with dad, we are thinking of a pig roast type reception, with picnic-y sides (salad, pasta sald, corn, fruit, etc) So, even though the site itself is expensive, being able to use our own catering might even it out a bit... maybe. Any thoughts on that???
Well, it's after 2 am, and my brain can't think of anything else I wanted to post. So, maybe I'll add more later this weekend! Bye!
They had quite a few photogs there. Unfortunately, they were all WAY out of our budget- I'm talking packages starting at $3,000!!! But we have a couple we still have in mind for them too.
We are still stuck on a ceremony/reception site. We have a possibility that we are going to visit tomorrow. I don't want to say what it is, and get my hopes up. They are pretty expensive and had quite a few people on the list for summer dates ahead of us. But, we will go tomorrow and see what happens. If it looks like it might work out, I'll post more details then. The site is $3,000- but that is for 9 am- midnight, it's on Lake Michigan and includes the use of a dining room, the large deck outside (for the ceremony), a kitchen and a conference room. They don't require you to use their caterer and we have an idea for that! When we worked at Fresh Food at GVSU, we knew some people who worked as chefs there- Sue and Katy, they are mother and daughter. They told us forever ago that whenever we get married they want to cater our reception. We completely forgot about that until Scott started working there again. Sue was asking him how we were, then asked if we got married yet. Scott said no and she said- good because you said we could cater your reception! After talking with dad, we are thinking of a pig roast type reception, with picnic-y sides (salad, pasta sald, corn, fruit, etc) So, even though the site itself is expensive, being able to use our own catering might even it out a bit... maybe. Any thoughts on that???
Well, it's after 2 am, and my brain can't think of anything else I wanted to post. So, maybe I'll add more later this weekend! Bye!
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Pictures on my camera
Alright, I'm clearing some pics off my camera...
These are from the zoo, 2 weeks ago I think. Not really sure when, cause as you can see the date got messed up on my camera.
These pictures below are when Dad and Holly went on a ropes course at the zoo.
These are from when Ally and Family came to Holland.
Pictures of our VERY windy day at the beach.
At my apartment.
This is how Brandon was almost the whole time at my apartment! lol
Flowers from Scott on my birthday!
These are from the zoo, 2 weeks ago I think. Not really sure when, cause as you can see the date got messed up on my camera.
These pictures below are when Dad and Holly went on a ropes course at the zoo.
These are from when Ally and Family came to Holland.
Pictures of our VERY windy day at the beach.
At my apartment.
This is how Brandon was almost the whole time at my apartment! lol
Flowers from Scott on my birthday!
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Sniffle Sniffle Sneeze Sneeze
Yep, I have a cold. Woke up with a sore throat Friday morning and it went down hill from there.
But, Saturday morning Scott and I still got up before 8 am, because I wanted to go to a Farmers Market they have downtown every Saturday. It was awesome! They have people with their goods from their farms from all over west Michigan. I found some cinnamon rolls from a baker in Gobles. They didn't have milk in them and they were delicious! Then we got a basket of tomatoes for $7 (turned out to be about 27 big tomatoes) then we got some peaches, a bunch of radishes for $1, 4 green peppers for $1 and a jar of cherry salsa. They had it all over up north but I never bought some (for fear we'd run out of money and need gas on the way home... lol)
So we brought everything home and I got to work. I got boiling water, stuck the peaches in for 30 seconds or so, then stuck them in cold water. The skins came right off. Then I sliced them and froze them. Then I did the same technique with the tomatoes. Woo hoo produce for the winter!!! Then Scott took me to Fresh Food, we both used to work there, he just started back up again cause they pay more than Meijer. (As soon as he's used up his paid days off, he's quitting Meijer) Any hoo, since he works there again he gets free meals. So, he treated me to a free lunch. lol Then we went to see a free movie on campus, Iron Man. We'd already seen it in the theaters but we like it so we watched it again. Then, we went to pick blueberries for dad. We picked 8 lbs. We finally got home a little after 7 pm and I felt like garbage. We had some friends who were going to come over, but due to a change in plans, Scott and I got Chinese food, and chilled at home and watched a movie. I took Nyquil and fell asleep at like 10:30 pm. That is huge for me. I usually go to bed around 12 or 1.
Sunday I felt even worse. We didn't even do anything. Well we walked to Blockbuster to see if they had a movie i wanted to see, but they didn't. That was my one outing. I took Nyquil again, fell asleep at 10 pm
This morning I felt slightly better, not as sneezy, but I did feel like I had a fever all day. But then again it was like 90 degrees. We didn't do much today. We went to Spring Lake, which is near Grand Haven. There is a Holiday Inn hotel there that we had heard about for weddings so we wanted to check it out. They are on the water, a little chanel that goes to Lake Michigan. I don't know though... I'm not convinced. I think I need to talk to the lady in charge of that. The one that was there said she has a bunch of pictures of how it looks set up. I think I'd need to see them. They gave us a little brochure, that has pricing, but it's a bit confusing... so we'll have to talk to them. We drove around a bit too looking for places we could have a reception near the beach... but no luck. We had quite the conversation about how Grand Haven is losing out on the opportunity to make a lot of money with weddings, because they have no good place near the water for a wedding/reception. If I really had any desire to deal with other people's weddings, I'd consider starting a business... but I don't.
And now, it's 12:30 am and I can't sleep. I don't feel hugely sick. A bit of a cold still, and a little feverish, but not as bad as yesterday. But, I took Nyquil anyway. That stuff really works for me, so I took it. And, I'm already starting to feel sleepy.
I love Nyquil.
But, Saturday morning Scott and I still got up before 8 am, because I wanted to go to a Farmers Market they have downtown every Saturday. It was awesome! They have people with their goods from their farms from all over west Michigan. I found some cinnamon rolls from a baker in Gobles. They didn't have milk in them and they were delicious! Then we got a basket of tomatoes for $7 (turned out to be about 27 big tomatoes) then we got some peaches, a bunch of radishes for $1, 4 green peppers for $1 and a jar of cherry salsa. They had it all over up north but I never bought some (for fear we'd run out of money and need gas on the way home... lol)
So we brought everything home and I got to work. I got boiling water, stuck the peaches in for 30 seconds or so, then stuck them in cold water. The skins came right off. Then I sliced them and froze them. Then I did the same technique with the tomatoes. Woo hoo produce for the winter!!! Then Scott took me to Fresh Food, we both used to work there, he just started back up again cause they pay more than Meijer. (As soon as he's used up his paid days off, he's quitting Meijer) Any hoo, since he works there again he gets free meals. So, he treated me to a free lunch. lol Then we went to see a free movie on campus, Iron Man. We'd already seen it in the theaters but we like it so we watched it again. Then, we went to pick blueberries for dad. We picked 8 lbs. We finally got home a little after 7 pm and I felt like garbage. We had some friends who were going to come over, but due to a change in plans, Scott and I got Chinese food, and chilled at home and watched a movie. I took Nyquil and fell asleep at like 10:30 pm. That is huge for me. I usually go to bed around 12 or 1.
Sunday I felt even worse. We didn't even do anything. Well we walked to Blockbuster to see if they had a movie i wanted to see, but they didn't. That was my one outing. I took Nyquil again, fell asleep at 10 pm
This morning I felt slightly better, not as sneezy, but I did feel like I had a fever all day. But then again it was like 90 degrees. We didn't do much today. We went to Spring Lake, which is near Grand Haven. There is a Holiday Inn hotel there that we had heard about for weddings so we wanted to check it out. They are on the water, a little chanel that goes to Lake Michigan. I don't know though... I'm not convinced. I think I need to talk to the lady in charge of that. The one that was there said she has a bunch of pictures of how it looks set up. I think I'd need to see them. They gave us a little brochure, that has pricing, but it's a bit confusing... so we'll have to talk to them. We drove around a bit too looking for places we could have a reception near the beach... but no luck. We had quite the conversation about how Grand Haven is losing out on the opportunity to make a lot of money with weddings, because they have no good place near the water for a wedding/reception. If I really had any desire to deal with other people's weddings, I'd consider starting a business... but I don't.
And now, it's 12:30 am and I can't sleep. I don't feel hugely sick. A bit of a cold still, and a little feverish, but not as bad as yesterday. But, I took Nyquil anyway. That stuff really works for me, so I took it. And, I'm already starting to feel sleepy.
I love Nyquil.
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