Basically the Cutest Flower Girl in the Whole Wide World.

This Wedding Wednesday I decided to blog about my flower girl, my oh-so-cute and incredibly gorgeous niece Aislin.  She will have just turned three by the time that Eric and I get married, so she will be a good age to teeter down the aisle throwing rose petals for Auntie Mickaela!

 

Hi everybody!  (This picture dissolves me into puddles of goo.  Cuteness overload.)

Anyone who knows me knows that I have never been much of a kid person (save for my students at the studio), and really not much of a baby person.  They are fussy and hard to keep happy, and drop exploding bombs of poo ten times a day.  But as soon as Aislin was born, I was unconsciously switched to full-on Aunt Mode.  Aunt Mode is different than Mom Mode in which I still cannot change diapers and reserve the right to hand her back over if she is tired and/or some other inexplicably hard to decipher emotion which makes her start screeching with sadness and cracks my heart just a little too much.  But Aunt Mode comes with the requisite bragging rights, sending emails with pictures of her to all my coworkers and friends, and speaking in high-pitched tones saying crazy things like, “OMGGGGGG, did you seeeee how she just blinked her eyes?????  SOOO CUUUUUTE.”

 

 

Are you kidding me?  OMG.

She may as well have been born holding a sign that says, “FUTURE FLOWER GIRL AND COMPETITIVE DANCER”.  I’ve already got her first tap solo costume designed, a duo partner picked out for her that was born 4 months after her (Hi Brielle!) and I am actually considering a foray back into the world of teaching pre-dance classes once she hits that age so I can spend even more time with her.  Squee!

 

 

She’s also going to be a pretty bucc hip hop dancer.  You can already tell.

 

So naturally, I have spent a lot of time scouring the internet for the cutest flower girl dresses I can find, and it was a no-brainer that I want Aislin to look like a mini-ballerina.  Poofs!  Tulle!  Tutu!  Ballerina flats!  Sock bun!  (Okay, she probably won’t have enough hair for a sock bun.)

 

 

So pretty.

 

 

This is a really cute inspiration photo...

 

 

Aislin already knows she looks good in tutu dresses – this was her first birthday outfit!  (With the cake Grandma made for her that’s taller than she is.)

 

Another really cute inspiration photo...

 

...and because this is my blog and now I’m in full on Aunt Mode and really cannot help myself, here are some more gratuitous pictures of my niece!  :)

 

Me, Aislin and Fuzzy Bunny hanging out on Fan Appreciation Day at the stadium

 

 

Splashing around in her pool!

So many little chompers poking through now...

 

Why hello.  Yes, I’m perfect.  :)

 

 

 

 

Me.  Whenever I'm around her.  All the time.

 

 

OKAY!  I’m done.

I also have a special plan for Aislin’s shoes, because any niece/flower girl of mine has to be sporting footwear as fantastic as mine for the big day!  I think I’m most excited to start blogging about the shoes.  Oh....the shoes.

Happy Wedding Wednesday!!!

 

~M

Well done Disney....well done.

So I had my first foray into the world of wedding dress shopping this past weekend.  It is a little early to be thinking about that all-important decision just yet, but my mother (who is MOB for the first and only time) was pretty excited for an appointment, so I decided to schedule one in.  I figured it was a practical decision - I have been looking at a lot of dresses online, but have been really confused about silhouettes and what might look good on me, so I would use this appointment to try on a bunch of different styles and at least figure out what direction I wanted to go in.

I was also interested in a certain collection of dresses by Alfred Angelo called the Disney Princess Collection.  Now, to the average joe, this may seem a tad over the top and ridiculous.  But, for someone who was a little girl growing up in the 80s that knew the words and music to all the Disney movies by heart, I was enthralled.  What girl did not grow up dreaming about being a Disney Princess?  Now Alfred Angelo has come out with a special collection of dresses for each individual Princess, so the girls that grew up pretending they were Belle (like me) that are now old enough to be getting married can really REALLY feel like a princess on their big day.  So I decided to book an appointment at a dress shop that carried this line of dresses.

Oh my GOD this picture made me laugh...

 

 

I was a tad nervous about dress shopping, because I have never been a fan of trying on regular clothes for any extended period of time at the stores - I am more of shoe shopper myself.  Turns out.....dress shopping is my new FAVORITE THING IN THE WORLD.  Putting on gorgeous gown after gorgeous gown, walking around seeing the way it swishes and sways, trying it on with shoes and a veil...it was pretty much the most fun thing ever.  I can totally see myself as one of those brats on Say Yes to the Dress that doesn't want to say yes to any one gown, simply because she doesn't want to stop shopping and trying on dresses. 

 

 

"Yes I do love this one...please bring me 50 more."

 

 

While I did have a great time fulfilling my childhood fantasy and pretending to be Belle...and Princess Jasmine...and Snow White...and Ariel...and best of all - Cinderella (featuring a spectacular line called the Cinderella Diamond Collection) at the end of it all I realized that these dresses were just that - childlike.  I felt like a girl playing wedding dressup rather than a woman who is actually getting married, and especially when she put a tiara on me, that was the end of my Disney dream.  It was still fun though!  :)

 

Leaving behind my glass slipper.

 

 

 

Me and my enchanted rose.

 

 

 

Fairest of them all!

 

 

So while that's the end of the Disney dress, the hunt for the perfect gown has just begun!  Toward the end of my appointment I did try on a dress that was sophisticated, elegant, glamorous and gorgeous, and it gave me a better idea of the kind of dress I'd like to wear on my wedding day...so stay tuned for updates!

 

 

Happy Wedding Wednesday!!!

~M 



Finding the Perfect Venue

So the first thing that we needed to tackle in this whole wedding plan was where we were going to have it.  (Surprised that it's not "what shoes will I wear?"  I know...me too.  But trust me, there are going to be many blog posts coming down the pipe for what I have in store for that for the big day!)

When it came to a wedding venue, Eric and I decided that we wanted a place that reflected us as people, as well as was very unique.  You see, we are not a fan of the cookie cutter wedding, and there were many things that we decided that we were going to kibosh that are normally a part of the typical wedding.  While the details of that are a blog post for a different Wedding Wednesday, one of the things we decided was that we did not want to have our wedding reception at a golf club or a hotel.  Which effectively eliminates about 90% of the wedding venues in Winnipeg.  But luckily there are still a few great choices in the city for spectacular, unique venues.

There were a couple of venues that we were considering, the first was actually the Fort Garry Hotel, which directly went against our "no golf club or hotel" rule.  However, you cannot argue the fact that this venue is absolutely stunning.  From the high ceilings to the ornate decor  and chandeliers, this is a venue that just exudes elegance and opulence.  Gorgeousness!

Wedding at the Fort Garry Hotel

 

Another venue we considered is the new Qualico Family Centre at Assinaboine Park.  This was very attractive to us both because we would be able to have our ceremony outdoors (weather permitting) and the building and grounds are absolutely gorgeous. 

 

 

The Qualico Family Centre

 

 

A very interesting venue we came across was the Roblin Centre at the Red River College Princess Street Campus.  We actually didn't know that they did weddings there, and what was attractive to us about this venue was that it was certainly nostalgic.  Eric and I are both graduates of the Business Administration program at RRC and before we went on to the Asper School of Business we both count our days at RRC among the best of our post-secondary experiences!  Also the high ceilings, exposed brick and technology installations make this a very attractive venue for a wedding.

 

 

 

Weddings at RRC Princess Street

 

 

But ultimately, I had my heart set on a venue that I had never set foot in, that I had only heard about in the usual urban wedding legends, and that I had been pining for before I ever got engaged.  (What, like you never thought about your wedding before you got engaged?)  The Millennium Centre on Main Street.  It used to be an old bank before being converted into one of Winnipeg's most popular wedding venues.  It has beautiful high ceilings with a large lighted dome, and beautiful marble pillars and bars.  We feel it also reflects who we are as a couple, with its urban location and modern decor.  (We're definitely not the "country" or "vintage" type...)  Eric and I went and saw the venue last Friday and I was not remotely disappointed.  It was simply stunning.  Not only that, but the owner Mitch is very friendly, funny and knowledgable about weddings, and they allow you to bring in your own alcohol under your own permit.  This was important to us because we are planning a special event in between our ceremony and reception, that I will also be blogging about at a later date! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Images of weddings at the Millennium Centre

 

 







Because the Millennium Centre was everything we had hoped for, we didn't have to think long about booking a date for our wedding there.  However, another great thing about the Millennium is that you can book a tentative date without paying a deposit.  If another couple calls and wants your date, you have 72 hours to either pay the deposit and secure the date, or forfeit the date.  This really works for us because there is another SUPER SECRET venue that Eric and I have our eye on.  So secret in fact, that I can't even give you any details about it on this blog.  If it ends up working out for us, then we can book this new place without losing any deposit.  If it ends up not working out for us, then we will pay the deposit and book the spectacular, unique, beautiful Millennium Centre for our ceremony and reception.  It's win win!

Happy Wedding Wednesday!!!

~M

The Proposal Story

 

It's Wedding Wednesday!

I have been so overwhelmed, interested, consumed and inspired by all things wedding since I got engaged, I decided to start a blog dedicated to the planning of the wedding.  There is so much that goes into putting the big day together, and I have been excited by every aspect of it so far - so I wanted a place that I could ramble on about all my ideas and inspiration, as well as a way to document the process from start to finish.  So, hopefully every Wednesday (depending on how busy life gets I suppose) I will be here blogging about all the little details!

I thought it was appropriate to start where it all began: the story of the proposal.

This is my fiance, Eric.

That's him high above the world in Dubai.  He's funny, smart, accomplished, well-travelled, and totally handsome. :)

Eric and I started a tradition of taking a trip each year for our birthdays.  Being that they are a week apart, we just forego buying each other gifts, and go somewhere instead.  In 2011, we took a crazy fun trip to Toronto where we saw a Jays game, a Bomber game, went to Niagara Falls, toured a few wineries, and hit up Toronto Island.  For the 2012 Birthday Trip of Awesome, we decided to pack up and do a road trip west to eventually visit my brother and sister-in-law in Osoyoos, BC.

Now, leading up to the trip, a number of people had asked me at various points if I thought any sort of engagement was going to be happening.  To be truthful, I didn't!  I have always known that Eric was "The One" if that's even a thing, but because we hadn't talked about it at any sort of length, and he hadn't asked me what kind of ring I would like, or made any hints or slip ups of any kind, I wasn't expecting a proposal on this trip.  Eric, bless his adorable heart, has a really hard time keeping secrets.  Combine that with my bloodhound-like instincts and I knew that when the time ever came that a proposal was coming, I would know right away.  So I had no idea, which made it all the more special and exciting.  Eric told me after the fact that he thought I knew, but I honestly didn't, which I believe is proven in this one undeniable fact: if I thought in any way, shape or form there was even the slightest possibility that I was getting engaged on this trip, I would have made SURE that I got a manicure before we left.  And as the first pictures of the ring on my hand prove, I was all nibs and stubs.  Sigh...

So off we went on our road trip, and our first major activity after a couple long days of driving and an extended stop in the hospital of Medicine Hat (story for another day) was a stop in Banff, Alberta.  Here Eric had planned a private helicopter tour of the Rockies for us (super sweet!) and we were able to take the tour a day early because they had some space.  So up we went over the tops of the Rockies, and it was amazing.  I highly recommend this to anyone going to the Banff area, it was absolutely spectacular. 

After the helicopter ride, we headed over to a trail to see if Eric could get some pictures of the Banff Springs Hotel (he's a pretty talented photographer as well).  I actually dipped my water bottle into a mini-river that we found along the trail, and the water was ice cold and crystal clear.  So delicious!

Sunlight coming through the trees on the trail...

After the trail walk, we went to the Banff Springs Hotel to check it out and ended up having some champagne and cognac on their outdoor patio, which has a spectacular view of the mountains.

 

Cheers! (Notice the nibs and stubs.  Awful.)

 

 

After camping overnight in Banff (yes, I said camping, I actually camped) we headed off to Osoyoos.  I was very excited for the activities we planned here, mostly which involved drinking wine, tasting wine, shopping for wine, ziplining, and then drinking some more wine.  My brother and sister-in-law are both sommeliers and have an extensive knowledge of the wines of the Okanagan, so I knew we were in good hands.  Justin is also General Manager of the restaurant at Tinhorn Creek Winery called Miradoro, so I told him before we left that Eric and I wanted to have dinner at his restaurant one night.  Originally Eric and I were going to do it Wednesday, but because we had ziplining planned for Wednesday I didn't want to be late to dinner, so I suggested changing it to Tuesday.  Eric seemed totally indifferent to what day we had it on, but I found out later I was causing him to sweat a little and make some last minute arrangements! 

 

 

Tuesday morning comes and we take our bikes that we rented the previous night and head out to the International Bike and Hike Trail, which is a 20km trail that runs between Oliver and Osoyoos.  Nothing like a good 40km bike ride to start your day.  It actually was a good ride, except for the first third of the trail is loose gravel so that wasn't the best, and then of course that also means that the last third of it on the way back is gravel, which just about killed our legs at that point.  But we soldiered through it, and after a long afternoon nap, we got ready for dinner.  My sister-in-law told me that she booked us a shuttle to take us to the winery for dinner, which I thought was super nice of her because then we didn't have to worry about driving.  Eric and I went outside to catch the shuttle, and a limo was sitting outside their place.  I walked right past it and said, "That isn't for us, we're waiting for a shuttle."  Eric suggested we at least ask the guy - Osoyoos is a pretty small town so the likelihood of a limo sitting outside their place being for someone else was slim.  Les the 108 year old limo driver did confirm he was going to Tinhorn, so we got into the limo and I raved about how nice my sister-in-law is that she got us a limo!  Little did I know that Eric planned the whole thing, and he didn't let on at all...

 

We arrived at the winery and headed right for the tasting room.  I was also very excited to visit Tinhorn because they have something called a demonstration vineyard, where you can go look at the grapes up close and taste them right off the vines.  So after tasting a few wines, we headed down into the vineyard to get a closer look.  We're starting to taste some grapes and look around, and then one of the tasting room employees comes out and tells us to grab some Gewurztraminer grapes and then come up and try that type of wine, because it tastes very close to the grape itself.  Thrilled that I was getting all this personalized attention and wine education, I enthusiastically grabbed some grapes and headed back up to the tasting room.  We tried that wine and a few others with some dark chocolate, and then went back down to finish tasting the grapes.  (I would later find out that my brother hadn't had time to put the chilled champagne out at the back of the vineyard, so he called the tasting room and told them to stall us, and ran out and set the champagne while we went back upstairs...)  Because I was so excited and thought this was the coolest experience ever, I tried every single type of grape on every single vine.  I also was enthralled by the signage they have in the demonstration vineyard and stopped to read every single sign about how the harvest the grapes, what their schedule is, what grape rot looks like, what kinds of pests they have to deal with, and so on.  So while poor Eric is nervous because he knows what is about to happen, I am happy as a clam, taking my time in the vineyard, reading everything, tasting everything and just generally being a slow poke!

 

 

MMM...grapes

 

Finally we arrive at the back of the vineyard and I notice a gorgeous archway of vines, and under it a table with a crisp white tablecloth and two chairs, with a bottle of champagne on ice.  It looked so beautiful and so picturesque, I thought it was a prop at first!  Eric then said to me, "I called ahead and set something up for us."  I was blown away, it was so sweet and thoughtful and in the most beautiful setting, but I still didn't even think of a proposal, I just thought how incredibly sweet he was that he arranged this for us!  (I have to laugh now at my complete oblivion to the situation, from the limo ride, to getting called back to the tasting room, to taking my time in the vineyard, to seeing this.  Oh man, so much for those "bloodhound-like instincts".)  Then he dropped to one knee, and asked me to marry him right then and there.  I was so surprised and shocked, I almost blurted out "YES!" before he was done asking!  He pulled out a gorgeous solitare diamond and put it on my finger, and we shared champagne in the vineyard before going up to the restaurant to have dinner and call our parents with the good news.

 

 

Site of the proposal...absolutely stunning.

 

 

It turned out that Eric had met with my parents to ask their blessing two weeks before we even left on the trip, and having received it, he contacted my brother and sister in law with what he was planning and arranged everything beforehand.  Everyone was in on it and kept the secret wonderfully, because I really had no idea! 





Delicious engagement dessert!

 

 

We spent the rest of our trip blissfully engaged, went ziplining, tried about 70 Okanagan wines in total and brought home three cases of different types of wines from the wineries we visited.  I know this is a bold statement coming from a twentysomething girl engaged to a world traveller, but - Best.  Trip.  Ever. 

 

 

Happy Wedding Wednesday!!! 

 

 

~M