Ready?  Yeah, me neither.

It has been such an amazing opportunity to blog here on the Bee, and I am so profoundly grateful for the encouragement, advice and kindness you have all sent my way.  I never could have imagined I would be sharing my wedding planning journey with all of you, and was even more surprised to realize how much your feedback and support through your many comments would mean to me.

I’ll be writing about our post-wedding life over at Another Day of Our Life, and I would love it if you’d like to check in every so often.  A scatterbrain with a lot of interests, it may be about cooking, baking, crafting, financial planning, or any number of other topics.

So many thank-you’s go out to each and every one of you for helping me enjoy every moment of planning our wedding.  I am so glad I was able to share our day with you.

The song probably isn’t finished yet.  Stick around for the rest – it’s worth it, I promise!

{guest photo}

With love,

Mrs. Husky

As you may have already seen from the Husky Recaps, we hired Mark of Mark Hayes Photography to capture the meaningful moments of our wedding day.  I cannot speak enough praise for Mark’s professionalism, unique eye, and genuine passion for his craft.  After our pool hall engagement session, we had high expectations for our wedding photos, and he more than delivered!

(Mark Hayes Photography)

His services were very reasonable, and he was willing to negotiate with us on travel fees.  When our night ran a little late, and we hadn’t yet gotten to the nightcap, Mark and his second shooter Dain stuck around – Mark later told me he wouldn’t allow himself to leave before capturing the whole story.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

When our photos arrived, Mark took the time to meet with us to deliver our proof prints.  Most photography packages he offers include a full set of 4×6 proofs of every photo – in addition to the DVD of digital images.  We expected to receive around 600-700 images.  Instead, he arrived with over 1200!  And of the 1200+ photos we received, I would estimate there to be 25 that I don’t love.  Notice I said don’t love - not don’t like.  I know I’ve already shared a couple of these photos, but I love them too much to not share again.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

If you are in the Denver area – even if you’re not in the Denver area – I would recommend Mark 100%.

Music: Jubilee Hot 7

If you’ll recall, the music aspect of our wedding day was very important to me.  We used an iPod, and asked a dear friend to “deejay” for the ceremony music, and I had made playlists for pre-ceremony, post-ceremony, and happy hour.

(Photo of me adjusting the happy hour playlist volume, courtesy of Mark Hayes Photography)

However, for the reception, I wanted a live band.  I spent a great deal of my early planning days trying to find the right band to play during the reception.  After posting a request on Craigslist, I received a response from Jeremy Wendelin of the Jubilee Hot 7 – a seven piece, New Orleans-style jazz band.  I loved their sound, they were very reasonably priced, and they were even willing to compose a unique version of our first dance song.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Hive, believe me when I tell you these folks were truly awesome.  Our first dance music was perfect, and every song after that had the dance floor packed.  We had a blast dancing well into the night, and Mr. H and I have subsequently received numerous comments about the energy and liveliness of the music.  It was straight-up FUN.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

While I didn’t do much research into a deejay, I don’t believe we paid much more for the Jubilee Hot 7 than we would have for the average deejay.  They provided their own sound equipment, and were gracious enough to let us use their mic for various announcements and toasts.  If you’re looking for a band in Denver, I would 100% recommend our band.  Even if you’re looking for a deejay, I would strongly urge you to consider the Jubilee Hot 7.  It was worth every single penny we paid them.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Venue: Rancho San Carlos

The property on which our wedding was held was simply beautiful.  We couldn’t have designed a better backdrop for our ceremony.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

The wide expanses of open landscape set the scene for our sunset session.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

And while I have no regrets about our decision to get married at Rancho San Carlos, I do have a handful of complaints.  We were the only size-able wedding they have had at the property.  While this gave us a great deal of flexibility in how everything worked out, it also caused a bit of strife.

• Between our first inquiry in November 2009, and the wedding itself held in October 2010, we had 4 different primary contacts for questions, requests, negotiations, etc.  This became very frustrating when trying to ensure a request we had made with contact #1 would be met by contact #4.
• We found to be the property caretaker to be quite invasive.  On the day we arrived – one day before the wedding – he was constantly around, repeating information that we had already discussed with the previous contact.  When I informed him our DOC (dear friend L) was aware of this information, he told me he would talk to her directly – because he didn’t want me to “go all bride-zilla.”  Both Mr. Husky and I were informed several times that we should hurry up and get our wedding over with, so he could move into the main house – where we were staying during the period of our rental.  On the day of our wedding, he was out riding his four-wheeler up and down the dirt roads that wound around the property, kicking up dust and debris on our wedding guests and site.
• When we arrived on-site, we were informed that the property’s dumpster was full.  We were instructed to place our garbage in the garage, but were later charged a significant portion of our deposit because some of the bags apparently leaked, as well as several other circumstantial issues.  I found this frustrating, because had the dumpster been available as promised, it never would have been an issue in the first place.

Now for the good:

• Rancho San Carlos was, obviously, beautiful.  The house was spacious and well-equipped, and the rates were reasonable.  The four bathrooms on the property eliminated lines, or the need to rent a portable toilet.
• The owners and caretakers were beyond helpful in making the property exactly what we wanted.  They rearranged and relocated hay bales, removed a play-set for our ceremony site, and much, much more.  When we discovered a soft spot in the barn’s floor during the previous day’s set-up, the caretaker immediately fixed the issue.
• They allowed many of our guests to camp on the property.  This was huge for many of our guests that weren’t keen on paying for a hotel room, or imbibed a bit too much to drive themselves to one.

Would I recommend it for your wedding?  I’m not sure.  I love our wedding, and I love the location.  I did not love how much of our deposit they kept for reasons I believed to be unfair.  Ultimately, even with the lost deposit, it was less expensive than a “wedding venue” in Denver, but I’m not sure if the cost of hauling our stuff down there, paying for lodging, and the lack of a taxi service for our guests was worth it.  And, actually, I’m not even sure they offer it as a rental any longer.

Bridal Boutique: anna bé

I’ve talked about my experience purchasing a sample gown from anna bé, but not much about the experience of the boutique itself.

My sister and I went together, and found anna bé and its employees warm and inviting.  We were offered champagne to sip during our shopping.  The exposed brick second-story shop was full of gorgeous designer dresses, each of them more lovely than the last.  The large windows throughout flooded the place with bright, natural light.  Giant mirrors were placed throughout, so every angle of your dress is visible.

(personal crappy iPhone photo)

Even though my dress was purchased during a sample sale, I was always treated as if I were a full-price paying bride.  When I purchased the dress, I was misinformed that it would be pressed after alterations, free of charge.  When I found out this was a mistake, I called and spoke with Anna, who immediately told me they would press it – after all, they were only as good as their word.

I would recommend anna bé to other Denver brides.  They have a wonderful selection of gowns, and an even more wonderful staff to help you into them.

Alterations: Beverly Richardson

A wonderful woman named Beverly Richardson did the alterations for my dress.  Despite a moment of panic, Beverly made my dress hug every single curve in all the right places.  No small feat, considering it initially looked like this!

(personal photo)

anna bé can put you in contact with Beverly if you are interested.

Flowers: Costco/Family & Friends

All flowers were arranged by various friends and family members.  The majority were purchased directly from Costco.  I have no qualms about the look or quality of the Costco blooms.

Food: Family & Friends

Our amazing friends and family generously donated their time and energy into prepping, cooking and serving a wonderful feast.  Thanks, guys.  Truly.

(guest photo)

We had asked Neighbor-B to create one of his infamous dance mixes to get the after-party started off right.  And boy, did he deliver…

I don’t even know how to explain these photos, other than to say that each and every one of us had a blast during those last few hours of the night.

A circle formed, and the Huskies were unleashed!

I’m pretty sure this one was taken during a Michael Jackson song:

Even I eventually found my way to the center…

We all found ourselves winding down, and decided to call it a night.  GM-K loaded us all into the van, and shuttled us safely back to our rooms.  And with that, the First Day of Our Life was finished.

I’m not saying goodbye just yet – stay tuned for just a couple more posts!

*All photos in this post are either personal or guest-captured.

Previous episodes:

• The bouquet was tossed.
• Everyone danced with us.
• We danced.
• We were toasted!
• We walked with the setting sun.
• We ate!
• We were happy.
• We hugged it out with family & friends.
• We vowed our love and traded rings.
• FIL-Husky performed our ceremony.
• I improvised traditions.
• Step-Husky spoke.
• I walked the plank.
• Almost time!
• The ladies beautified.
• We rehearsed.
• We unloaded and assembled.
• Someone unplugged the fridge.
• The music played.
• We honeymooned.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Yes, that is a baby bottle nipple atop the bottle of whiskey, but I can assure you the baby did not imbibe.

Quite a few folks were indeed interested in joining, and I think a large majority of the remaining guests ended up on the porch with us.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

(Mark Hayes Photography)

(Mark Hayes Photography)

We also used this opportunity to distribute gifts to our wonderful friends who truly went above and beyond to ensure our day was perfect.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

We all raised our glasses (and gifts) into a group toast:

(Mark Hayes Photography)

And then it was time for our photographers to leave.

As we prepared to return to the barn, a sudden light-bulb appeared: We hadn’t signed our marriage license yet!  I have no idea why we didn’t do it right away; too distracted, I suppose.  Obviously the lighting was not in our favor, and the professional lenses of our photographer were long gone.

(guest photo)

(guest photo)

We tucked the license into our wine box, and returned to the barn for the after-party.

Previous episodes:

• The bouquet was tossed.
• Everyone danced with us.
• We danced.
• We were toasted!
• We walked with the setting sun.
• We ate!
• We were happy.
• We hugged it out with family & friends.
• We vowed our love and traded rings.
• FIL-Husky performed our ceremony.
• I improvised traditions.
• Step-Husky spoke.
• I walked the plank.
• Almost time!
• The ladies beautified.
• We rehearsed.
• We unloaded and assembled.
• Someone unplugged the fridge.
• The music played.
• We honeymooned.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

But you should know that the route from point A [deciding] and point B [wearing] was not exactly straight.  In fact, it it was quite squiggly.  What follows is a word of caution about using Etsy’s Alchemy process.

Mr. Husky had his mind made up about the suspenders way before I came on board with the idea.  He had evolved the vision from all the men in suspenders to having the groomsmen in suspenders, and Husky would wear a vest made from matching fabric.  He wanted ties to match as well.  After posting a request through Alchemy, he had a few responses but none could suggest a fabric that he liked.  Eventually, he accepted a bid where he would select and buy the fabric, ship it to the seamstress, and she would make the items for him.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

During the negotiating process, he made a few points very clear:

• He wanted a vest with the same fabric on the front and back (in other words, he didn’t want a vest with the color/texture on the front, and the basic black satin back, like a lot of tuxedo vests).
• He wanted the vest to have a usable hidden front pocket – not a faux-pocket.
• The groomsmen that would wear the ties and suspenders all come in a variety of shapes and sizes.

He sent along his measurements, spent hours upon hours searching for the perfect fabric, sent it to the seamstress, and waited.  Some time passed, and he finally heard from her.  She told him she was having trouble with the pocket on the vest – she couldn’t find a way to make it work.  So it was decided that the pocket would be exposed on the outside of the vest.  Not ideal, but not a disaster.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

The vest was the first to arrive.  He tried it on, and it was HUGE.  Despite the measurements he had provided, this thing barely clung to his shoulders.  Thankfully, he had an appointment with a local tailor to have his suit altered – so he just added the vest to the order.  In the end, it turned out great – albeit a bit more costly than our original expectation.

Then the ties arrived.  Mr. Husky tried one on to find the tie was very, very long.  As in, 4-5″ longer than the longest tie in his closet.  Hmmm.  Double-windsors it was.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

And then there was more waiting.  A lot more waiting.  Finally, Husky emailed the seamstress to find out about the status of his suspenders, and was shocked to find out the woman had experienced some health issues, but would be finishing them soon and mailing them off.  We received them about 3 weeks before the wedding.  And when we opened the package, we discovered the seamstress had not included adjustment buckles.  They were all one size, and that one size barely fit Mr. Husky.  Our hopes for them fitting the rest of the groomsmen were quite low.  In a panic, he sent her a message, and she offered to make two additional pairs.  She made them and shipped them quickly, and we received them the week before the wedding.  And these suspenders?  They had adjustment buckles.

This turned out to be a good thing, as they were needed for two of our groomsmen.  It did take away a little bit from the uniformity, but the mis-matched bridesmaids already had that covered.  In the end, we received all of the items we ordered, and managed to make them work despite their minor issues.  And everything was fine.

(Mark Hayes Photography – for the record, I have no clue what’s happening here.)

But here are my words of caution for those of you considering custom items:

• If you need something to be flawless, this may not be your best option.  When we first received the suspenders, we were afraid they would be completely unusable.  Even if some of the groomsmen could wear them, it seemed ridiculous to have two guys with, and the rest without.  But even if the guys had to go without suspenders, neither of us would have considered it a disaster.
• Time was really winding down by the time we received all components of the order.  To be clear, I do not blame the seller for the health issues.  But I would suggest anyone considering Alchemy to be sure and request your items with enough time.

In the end, we had all our groomsmen wearing what we had wanted.  But there were many hurdles along the way.  I also want to point out that sometimes Alchemy requests can work out perfectly.  Case in point:

(Mark Hayes Photography)

My beautiful necklace was a completely custom alchemy request from the wonderful Jelena of Change of hART.  Not only did she do an amazing job that far surpassed my expectations, but she was prompt and pleasant to work with.

*Side Note: Etsy’s Alchemy no longer exists, and it is now recommended you request custom items directly from an Etsy seller.  Regardless, I believe these tips can still apply to custom requests – through Etsy or elsewhere.*

My oh my, where did we leave off?  Oh yes, the dancing!  The band prepared for their next set break, and I prepared to toss my bouquet.  All the ladies, regardless of marital or relationship status, were invited up to the dance floor.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Meanwhile, I evaluated the height of the ceiling beams and prepared my bouquet by pulling apart the stems for the breakaway.  MIL Husky and my wonderful Aunt M came up with the idea to have mini-bouquets, instead of single stems. 

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Up in the air they went:

(Mark Hayes Photography)

The ladies leapt for the mini-bouquets – check out the height BM-K is getting!

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Obviously it worked out for her…one for each hand!

(Mark Hayes Photography)

I think they all enjoyed themselves….

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Some even more than others:

(Mark Hayes Photography)

With the bouquet toss out of the way, it was almost time for the nightcap.

*All photos in this post courtesy of the wonderful Mark Hayes Photography.

Previous episodes:

• Everyone danced with us.
• We danced.
• We were toasted!
• We walked with the setting sun.
• We ate!
• We were happy.
• We hugged it out with family & friends.
• We vowed our love and traded rings.
• FIL-Husky performed our ceremony.
• I improvised traditions.
• Step-Husky spoke.
• I walked the plank.
• Almost time!
• The ladies beautified.
• We rehearsed.
• We unloaded and assembled.
• Someone unplugged the fridge.
• The music played.
• We honeymooned.

I spent 3 days, from dawn until dark, fixing a crashed server.  When it finally recovered from its massive failure, I jetted off to spend a week with my father who has been very ill in recent months. 

The morning after I arrived, we had to take him to the emergency room, and he spent the following 4 days in ICU.  I called my sister and my husband in for support.  My dad was moved to the regular floor for another 3 days and then came home.  Enter: Flu. 

I went down first, and it was miserable.    My dad’s condition makes common illness become very serious, so Mr. H and I checked into a hotel to keep me quarantined.  My flight back home had to be cancelled.  Then my cousin - who has been caring for my father over the last several weeks – went down too.  And then my dad spiked a fever, and back to the hospital we went.  Turns out he (and most likely we) had come down with H1N1.  Another 3 days spent in ICU – this time in the isolation room.  We finally got him back home, and then had to fly out the following day.  I’m hoping to avoid hospitals for a while. 

Two full weeks later, I returned home to my puppy (who had grown exponentially during my absence), and tried to decompress in time for my birthday. 

This long, drawn out story is all to say that I’ve had a good reason to ignore my blog.  But I will be back soon.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Our dance floor was never empty from the band’s first note until their last, save the short duration of their set breaks. 

(Mark Hayes Photography)

(Mark Hayes Photography)

I found a few new dance partners…

(Mark Hayes Photography)

(Mark Hayes Photography) 

(Mark Hayes Photography)

(Mark Hayes Photography)

(Mark Hayes Photography)

And, so did Mr. Husky:

(Mark Hayes Photography)

(Mark Hayes Photography)

It seemed like everyone was on the dance floor at one point or another…

(Mark Hayes Photography)

 (Mark Hayes Photography)

(Mark Hayes Photography)

(Mark Hayes Photography)

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Remember my necklace?  Well, the brooches that made up the clasp were heavier than the front strands, and would fall back and choke me.  So we used a piece of fashion tape to adhere the brooches to my shoulders.  During one particularly energetic dance move, Uncle Alaska twirled me around the dance floor, and the tape lost its battle:

(guest photo)

Check out my mom’s face in the background (sorry mom)!  For the rest of the night, I went sans necklace and kept on dancing.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

*All photos courtesy of wonderful Mark Hayes Photography, unless otherwise noted.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Our band played an amazing rendition of our song, and I must confess to a major wedding regret here. 

We didn’t hire a videographer, and while I don’t necessarily regret that decision, I do regret my failure to consider how important it might be for me to have a recording of these few minutes.  See, a lot of first dance songs tend to be pre-recorded songs – if we had chosen a DJ, we would likely have a copy of the version we decided to use.  But since our band arranged a completely unique version of this song, I’m afraid that I will never, ever again be able to hear the song we first swayed to as husband and wife.  And I have to admit to feeling very sad about that. 

(Mark Hayes Photography)

We did ask a friend to videotape the ceremony for us, but it didn’t occur to me to ask for a first dance recording as well.  The camera was securely stowed away immediately after the ceremony footage.  My PSA here is not to suggest that you need a videographer – but only to tell you that, if having a friend film for you, seriously consider the moments you want recorded, and realize it may go beyond just the ceremony.  Moving on…

(Mark Hayes Photography)

It was so easy to get lost in one another, and the end of the song came too soon. 

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Our song ended, and it was time for the parent dances.  I talked a while back about our decision to combine the Father-Daughter and Mother-Son dances, and both MIL Husky and Daddy Husky joined us on the dance floor.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Daddy Husky had changed into something a little more comfy, and was representing the Pacific NW!

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Midway through the song, the band invited everyone else onto the dancefloor.  It got a lot more crowded, and I had the opportunity to share a dance with Step-Husky (who had also changed into more comfortable clothes).

(Mark Hayes Photography)

*All photos in this post by Mark Hayes Photography.

Previous episodes:

• We were toasted!
• We walked with the setting sun.
• We ate!
• We were happy.
• We hugged it out with family & friends.
• We vowed our love and traded rings.
• FIL-Husky performed our ceremony.
• I improvised traditions.
• Step-Husky spoke.
• I walked the plank.
• Almost time!
• The ladies beautified.
• We rehearsed.
• We unloaded and assembled.
• Someone unplugged the fridge.
• The music played.
• We honeymooned.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

I think he was nervous.

He kept us all laughing through the speech:

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Then hugged his brother, and handed off the mic to MOH-H:

(Mark Hayes Photography)

MOH-H began by totally selling me out.  She explained that she’s not a very good public speaker, and that she would be employing a strategy that the two of us had developed during a speech class we took together in college.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Before we had to give speeches, we would meet in the bathroom and down a shooter of bourbon.  Our bartender F delivered the goods.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

With her nerves drowned, she went on to give a very thoughtful, funny and loving toast.  We hugged.

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Mr. Husky joined us:

(Mark Hayes Photography)

And Best-M brought it full circle:

(Mark Hayes Photography)

Best-M and MOH-H cleared the floor, and it was time for our first dance.

*All photos in this post courtesy of Mark Hayes Photography.

Previous episodes:

• We walked with the setting sun.
• We ate!
• We were happy.
• We hugged it out with family & friends.
• We vowed our love and traded rings.
• FIL-Husky performed our ceremony.
• I improvised traditions.
• Step-Husky spoke.
• I walked the plank.
• Almost time!
• The ladies beautified.
• We rehearsed.
• We unloaded and assembled.
• Someone unplugged the fridge.
• The music played.
• We honeymooned.