Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Save the Date.
I swear that we are actually making progress sifting through all 1100 of the wedding photos we got from the photographer but in the meantime please busy yourselves by marking your calendars: Saturday, July 26 will be a fiesta of festivious proportions here at La Casa de Love. Not ONLY will we celebrate our recent nuptials with those in the American Northeast who could not make it down to sunny Florida for the big day, but we will also celebrate my 29th birthday. And, contrary to popular belief, we only turn 29 once, folks! Hope to see you all there. Or, er, here. You know, where we live. Details to come. Probably before the wedding photos.
Monday, May 19, 2008
He's Slick.
We've been waiting for our marriage certificate to arrive for five weeks and one day, not that anyone is counting. Upon checking the mail on the way home tonight, my heart absolutely dropped when all I found was a couple of solicitations from some assemblyman looking for my vote. Another day, another disappointment.
When I came upstairs, I showed Billy the pile of disappointing mail and he suggested we put on some music to console ourselves. He specifically suggested I use my computer so we could hear something a little different. Got over to my computer and it wasn't until after I lifted up the screen of my laptop that I saw... a piece of paper! With a raised seal and signature! Saying that YES! We are in fact married! The state of Florida says so!
Oddly enough, it had occurred to me that maybe Billy had taken ONLY the marriage certificate out of the mailbox to trick me, but I dismissed it, thinking he would not be so manipulative. I guess I have underestimated my husband. Touche.
Good news is that now we (well, I) can finally start the name change process and fully become a Regan. Lord help us all.
When I came upstairs, I showed Billy the pile of disappointing mail and he suggested we put on some music to console ourselves. He specifically suggested I use my computer so we could hear something a little different. Got over to my computer and it wasn't until after I lifted up the screen of my laptop that I saw... a piece of paper! With a raised seal and signature! Saying that YES! We are in fact married! The state of Florida says so!
Oddly enough, it had occurred to me that maybe Billy had taken ONLY the marriage certificate out of the mailbox to trick me, but I dismissed it, thinking he would not be so manipulative. I guess I have underestimated my husband. Touche.
Good news is that now we (well, I) can finally start the name change process and fully become a Regan. Lord help us all.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Maid of Honor Speech.
Siggi, my maid of honor, is truly an awesome individual. Not only did she deliver an amazing speech at our wedding, but she even transcribed it for me to have forever. And now that means I can share it with you. Enjoy!
"I have two younger brothers, Ryan and Brandon, who are twins. I have always envied their twinship. Being a twin, at least the way Ryan and Brandon are, means they are never alone. They approach everything in life with confidence, knowing they will never be alone in any wrong decisions. Other people contemplate colleges and careers carefully before making a decision, but the twins can seemingly jump into the right choice, never worrying that it might be wrong since the other is doing the same.
"Needless to say, my life has not been like this. While I had friends and my brothers growing up, I always was more solitary. When I entered the second grade in Germany, I was the only one in my class who did not speak German. At the same time Ryan and Brandon entered kindergarten as a two-person alliance that persisted in speaking English far into the school year. I appreciated my more independent and unique life, but it was also a lot more scary.
"When I met Caitlin in seventh grade my life instantly changed. By the time we bumped into each other for the seventh class on that first day of school we were friends and by the end of September we were best friends. We by-passed the usual note-passing in class, instead writing to each other in a spiral notebook that we called "the notebook." In it, we contemplated such important questions as whether or math teacher, Mr. Meyer, was an alien, and whether it was possible to shoot a banana out of its skin like they do in cartoons.
"When we separated in high school the notebook followed me. It was a physical symbol of my confidence as I navigated the halls among students I did not know. Our notes became longer and more profound.
"Since then, Caitlin and my friendship has evolved into an invincible relationship, reminiscent of Ryan and Brandon's twinship. However, far from doing everything together, we instead support each other in our own unique paths. Since the seventh grade, I have never felt alone or doubted myself. Caitlin was always there beside me in the form of the notebook. She is the strength in my life that defines me to the world.
"Four years ago a new character entered our notebook. Billy's name became mentioned more and more often, and the connotation associated with him grew more and more positive. By the end of 2004, when I left for the Peace Corps, I knew I was leaving her in good hands. Around that time, Caitlin wrote, 'I'm trying not to obsess too much over Billy, but it's hard. I feel like I imagine a Boston Red Sox fan must feel like right now... after all these years of trying maybe this time it will happen.'
"Over the two years I was in Africa, Billy became the main character in Caitlin's notes and life. In a different sort of friendship, I might have become jealous. As it is, I have never felt threatened by Billy. Instead of taking her away from me, somehow he impelled her to grow, so that she seemingly has double as much of herself to share. Caitlin wrote it herself best: 'The fact that Billy genuinely cares about me has really helped to open me up to my closer family and friends.'
"Billy's effect on Caitlin has redefined the word 'relationship' for me: There are friendships that entertain, amuse and make life more fun. Then there are those rare relationships that make us grow into bigger, better and more powerful people, and mold us into who we are. These are the ones that I treasure. Outside of my family I still only have this one, or possibly two now, of such a relationship, but I know that these are worth more than all others combined.
"I would not be who I am today without Caitlin, and I love the person that she has become, and is still becoming through Billy."
Siggi, thank you so much for being the twin for my soul.
"I have two younger brothers, Ryan and Brandon, who are twins. I have always envied their twinship. Being a twin, at least the way Ryan and Brandon are, means they are never alone. They approach everything in life with confidence, knowing they will never be alone in any wrong decisions. Other people contemplate colleges and careers carefully before making a decision, but the twins can seemingly jump into the right choice, never worrying that it might be wrong since the other is doing the same.
"Needless to say, my life has not been like this. While I had friends and my brothers growing up, I always was more solitary. When I entered the second grade in Germany, I was the only one in my class who did not speak German. At the same time Ryan and Brandon entered kindergarten as a two-person alliance that persisted in speaking English far into the school year. I appreciated my more independent and unique life, but it was also a lot more scary.
"When I met Caitlin in seventh grade my life instantly changed. By the time we bumped into each other for the seventh class on that first day of school we were friends and by the end of September we were best friends. We by-passed the usual note-passing in class, instead writing to each other in a spiral notebook that we called "the notebook." In it, we contemplated such important questions as whether or math teacher, Mr. Meyer, was an alien, and whether it was possible to shoot a banana out of its skin like they do in cartoons.
"When we separated in high school the notebook followed me. It was a physical symbol of my confidence as I navigated the halls among students I did not know. Our notes became longer and more profound.
"Since then, Caitlin and my friendship has evolved into an invincible relationship, reminiscent of Ryan and Brandon's twinship. However, far from doing everything together, we instead support each other in our own unique paths. Since the seventh grade, I have never felt alone or doubted myself. Caitlin was always there beside me in the form of the notebook. She is the strength in my life that defines me to the world.
"Four years ago a new character entered our notebook. Billy's name became mentioned more and more often, and the connotation associated with him grew more and more positive. By the end of 2004, when I left for the Peace Corps, I knew I was leaving her in good hands. Around that time, Caitlin wrote, 'I'm trying not to obsess too much over Billy, but it's hard. I feel like I imagine a Boston Red Sox fan must feel like right now... after all these years of trying maybe this time it will happen.'
"Over the two years I was in Africa, Billy became the main character in Caitlin's notes and life. In a different sort of friendship, I might have become jealous. As it is, I have never felt threatened by Billy. Instead of taking her away from me, somehow he impelled her to grow, so that she seemingly has double as much of herself to share. Caitlin wrote it herself best: 'The fact that Billy genuinely cares about me has really helped to open me up to my closer family and friends.'
"Billy's effect on Caitlin has redefined the word 'relationship' for me: There are friendships that entertain, amuse and make life more fun. Then there are those rare relationships that make us grow into bigger, better and more powerful people, and mold us into who we are. These are the ones that I treasure. Outside of my family I still only have this one, or possibly two now, of such a relationship, but I know that these are worth more than all others combined.
"I would not be who I am today without Caitlin, and I love the person that she has become, and is still becoming through Billy."
Siggi, thank you so much for being the twin for my soul.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Photos are here!
We got our wedding photos today! Ah, the memories...
We've got six CDs worth of photos to sort through before we can post anything but we promise to have them up as soon as humanly possible.
Aside: We were laying bets on whether the photos would arrive before the marriage certificate. You'll never guess who won.
We've got six CDs worth of photos to sort through before we can post anything but we promise to have them up as soon as humanly possible.
Aside: We were laying bets on whether the photos would arrive before the marriage certificate. You'll never guess who won.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Bridesmaid Gifts.
I wanted something personal and unique to give to my girls to thank them for everything they did for us throughout the time leading up to the wedding. After giving it quite a bit of thought, I came up with the idea of custom-designed t-shirts to wear on the rehearsal day as well as personalized mix CDs consisting of songs that suited the day. For the final touch, my mom made each of them earrings to match the orchids they carried and wore in their hair.
I personalized the CD covers with the flamingo design we've all come to know and love, and chose songs based on how I felt about the girls throughout the process of getting married (and it is a process!). The one that still makes me cry is "The Wind Beneath My Wings." Back in January, we all got together for a bridal party slumber party and ended up singing karaoke. We dedicated that song to ourselves and before you know it, there were actual live eagles flying all over my living room. We could hear them loud and clear: "Caw-caw! Caw-caw!" During the reception, I dedicated that song to them and sure enough, the eagles returned. I'll never be able to listen to that song again without simultaneous laughter and tears.
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Monkey Dolls.
Tomorrow will be our three-week anniversary as a married couple, and I have to admit that we've done a pretty poor job of sharing stories about our big day here on the site. We'll try to do better.
One thing I was pretty proud of was the little dolls I made as wedding favors-slash-place cards.
I think I came up with the idea for these sometime last June during my marathon commute from Jackson Heights to Battery Park. I have a lot of time for idea-making during that time, which is a cross between a curse and a blessing, but that's a whole other post.
The idea started off a lot more complicated. Initially I was thinking it would be so cool to have little personalized dolls that would resemble each of the guests. I was actually going to individualize each one with matching hair, eyes, and clothing so people would be able to identify them by looks alone.
In the end, I probably would have needed to quit my job and knit 12 hours a day for the whole year to pull something like that off, so I designed these little guys instead. They went through a few iterations before I finally settled on this simple pattern. Each one took about an hour to make, not counting the arms, which I did in sets that generally took an hour to make and then attach. Inside, I used fish gravel to weigh them down so they would stand upright without getting knocked over by the wind. Regular cotton batting made them soft. In some of the earlier ones, before I got the cotton batting, I used shopping bags, which were soft enough but were also kind of noisy.
The cocktail umbrellas were the perfect size and made them beachy enough to be appropriate for our Sandbar wedding. To personalize them, I cut out strips of colored paper and hand-wrote everyone's names on them. The dolls held the umbrella in one hand and the name tag in the other, and they became place card holders.
Some people called them monkeys, because their arms are pretty long. I hadn't thought of that interpretation, but it's appropriate since Billy and I have been known to call each other "Monkey" from time to time.
I'm hoping that once our official photos come in, we'll have some shots of the "monkeys" in action on the wedding day. I'll be sure to post photos when they arrive.
And, if there is anyone who didn't make it to the wedding who wants their own personalized monkey, drop me a line! I'm happy to send one in the mail. We had a guest list of over 100 people, so we ended up with about 50 extras. Plenty to go around!
One thing I was pretty proud of was the little dolls I made as wedding favors-slash-place cards.
I think I came up with the idea for these sometime last June during my marathon commute from Jackson Heights to Battery Park. I have a lot of time for idea-making during that time, which is a cross between a curse and a blessing, but that's a whole other post.
The idea started off a lot more complicated. Initially I was thinking it would be so cool to have little personalized dolls that would resemble each of the guests. I was actually going to individualize each one with matching hair, eyes, and clothing so people would be able to identify them by looks alone.
In the end, I probably would have needed to quit my job and knit 12 hours a day for the whole year to pull something like that off, so I designed these little guys instead. They went through a few iterations before I finally settled on this simple pattern. Each one took about an hour to make, not counting the arms, which I did in sets that generally took an hour to make and then attach. Inside, I used fish gravel to weigh them down so they would stand upright without getting knocked over by the wind. Regular cotton batting made them soft. In some of the earlier ones, before I got the cotton batting, I used shopping bags, which were soft enough but were also kind of noisy.
The cocktail umbrellas were the perfect size and made them beachy enough to be appropriate for our Sandbar wedding. To personalize them, I cut out strips of colored paper and hand-wrote everyone's names on them. The dolls held the umbrella in one hand and the name tag in the other, and they became place card holders.
Some people called them monkeys, because their arms are pretty long. I hadn't thought of that interpretation, but it's appropriate since Billy and I have been known to call each other "Monkey" from time to time.
I'm hoping that once our official photos come in, we'll have some shots of the "monkeys" in action on the wedding day. I'll be sure to post photos when they arrive.
And, if there is anyone who didn't make it to the wedding who wants their own personalized monkey, drop me a line! I'm happy to send one in the mail. We had a guest list of over 100 people, so we ended up with about 50 extras. Plenty to go around!
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