Welcome gift bags

I don't want to ruin the surprise for any of you wedding-goers, so I won't give details, but last night I went shopping for things to put in the welcome gift bags for the people who are staying at the Sheraton. The kids have separate gift bags, which I hope will keep them pleasantly occupied during any downtime the weekend will afford.

I even stuffed the bags and so they're mostly set until I drop them off at the Sheraton a few days before the wedding. I have yet to write up the packet with local information (restaurants, Boston info, other things to do in the area, etc.), which I'll also put in the bags. Hopefully I can get that done tomorrow.

So far I have 8 rooms booked, although I'm expecting a flurry of RSVP cards in the next 5 days (hopefully!), so more will be booked shortly.

Then, next Thursday, Paul and I start individually bugging people and getting head counts and hotel info, if necessary, because we really need to know who's coming and who's not.

For those of you traveling in from out of town, remember, the Sheraton room rate is good only until Aug. 1, so I have to let them know you're coming by then. If you'd rather RSVP by email, feel free!

1001 Ways to Save Money...and Still Have a Dazzling Wedding

I've also found a book very early on in my planning called 1001 Ways to Save Money...and Still Have a Dazzling Wedding.

100 Creative Ways To Cut Wedding Costs

Paul and I love bargains, so I thought this article would be useful to our audience as well. (Thanks, Rich McIver, for pointing me to it!) They're coming at the topic from the point of view that you don't have to start your life together in credit card debt, which is absolutely a good point.

Flower girl basket

And here's the flower girl basket:

Sorry the pic's dark... It'll be much cuter in the light of day. I wanted the basket to be a Nantucket basket to bring home the whole New England idea...

Invite package

So I finally took some pix. Here are the invitations:


And here is the bundle of extra info cards (hotel info, RSVP cards, map):

Colors on the gentlemen

This past week, I spent 6 hours shopping for wedding things. I'm not kidding. I shopped for hours for ties for Bill, Ryan and my dad. The good news is I got lovely light blue ties and . :-) Decision made, for better or for worse. They will all be in blue suits, which will go well with the light blue bridesmaids' dresses.

What a weekend!

Paul, Alice, Ryan and I went down to Pennsylvania this weekend because Paul's and my shower was on Saturday at Scott and Liz's house. Liz, Maggie, Jannine and my mom did such a great job of making the party special -- from little pina colada-flavored wedding bell candies to printing out pictures of us and hanging them from windows with ribbon to making such a wonderful spread of food (it really was the talk of the party!). Maggie picked up her mom on the way down, and so Maria came from CT for the shower. It was just a really wonderful gathering of family, both actual and adopted.

The party had special significance to Paul and me, as it turned out, because on Thursday evening we found a new respect for life (specifically mine). Let's just say getting a new car is a more immediate concern than it was last Wednesday. I'm was in the car alone and I'm fine -- a few scratches and bruises -- but I was extremely lucky on many fronts.

At any rate, it was a wonderful party and a great time with family. Thanks to everyone who came and made us feel so special and loved. It really touched our hearts.