Doubletree in Ontario

Tomorrow we're headed to the Doubletree in Ontario at 4:15.

There are two possible rooms we could use:

Lake Gregary Ballroom (The spelling looks weird, but I got it off the site...)
which is 2300 sq. ft and fits 250 guests
(those chandeliers look like something you could buy in the Sims!... :) )

Empire Ballroom-Grove which is 4000 sq. ft.
and more than 250 guests
I'm wondering if there's an Asian theme going on in here already?

I'll find out pricing tomorrow...

Flower appt

Meeting with Scarlet (Amy's sister-in-law) on Friday at 6:30. I'm to bring pictures that I like/ideas I'm thinking of. From the meeting, I hope to learn about flowers in season, new floral arrangement terminology, and an idea about prices. I'll let you know how all that goes down...

Flower power

We still haven't decided on any colors etc., but I have been looking at various flowers. I still need to look to see what's local, what's in season (or will be in season), etc. etc. etc.

I'm calling my friend's sister-in-law for a consult just to see what prices are going to look like. I'd like to make a trip to LA some weekend and see how the flowers are set up down there...is it just bunches of flowers you arrange yourself? How much does it cost? Etc.

In the meantime, here are some flowers that I thought looked nice.

Arrangements of sunflowers, white and burgundy celosia, tuberoses, and other wildflowers

Dahlias, tulips, Queen Anne's lace, calla lilies, roses, phlox and scabiosas. Peacock feathers jutted out around the edges for an exotic touch

Roses, freesia, gerberas, delphinium, lisianthus and berries

Sunflowers with a few white and blue wildflower blossoms added. Ancient cultures believe sunflowers represent devotion.

Agapanthuses, calla lilies, and brown pods. Mostly interested in the agapanthuses. If we do calla lilies, I'd prefer them to not to be white.

Hydrangeas, tulips, irises, sweet peas, ranuculuses, and roses.

Lilacs, blue hydrangeas, and orange peonies burst with color. A burlap and raffia wrap completed the natural look.

Dahlias and orchids


Daylilies, hydrangeas, gerbera daisies, tulips, asters, peonies, and cranberries.

Red roses, purple irises, and mango calla lilies

I'm definitely feeling the orange, blue/purple. I really like orchids and the mango calla lilies.

Ring around the rosy...

White gold, tungsten, titanium, stainless steel.
Comfort fit, brushed, matte, antiqued.
Hezelberg's, Zales, Daniel's, Kay's.

So many choices...
that after a while all look the same...
Good thing that it's Eddie looking, not me. :)

When we were at Jared's yesterday, he did find a ring that he liked... 14K white gold, grooved, and brushed something or other...



Today, a ring with pinstripes caught his eye...Eddie and his pinstripes...

He was also finding out more about the Tungsten and Titanium rings. He likes the color, but not the fact that you can't resize the ring. Tungsten and Titanium are also supposed to be super durable. One woman at Kay suggested that he buys two rings..one for formal wear and one for everyday wear.

Still no luck finding a wedding band that fits with my ring...so my options are 1) go without a wedding band and have the engagement ring serve both purposes or 2) custom made to fit my ring.

Talking about where we are with our wedding plans:

Photographer: www.triversityweddings.com Eddie's mom's coworker's husband (twice removed once replaced yadda yadda yadda ... ;) ) does photography. His starting price is $1000 for a full album, but we have yet to call for updated prices. We get all the photos on a CD and the price also includes engagement pictures. He works with a videographer who charges $500. I've looked at his website and his pictures look okay. I like his engagement pictures more than the wedding ones though.

Flowers: Eddie's friend Jeff's mom's company, a florist recommended to Eddie's mom, my friend's sister-in-law, flowers from LA....

DJ: Eddie's brother's friend is charging us $50.

Invitations: Make our own. Here's what I had in mind...

Favors: Back to the family theme...I was thinking we'd do cookies. Pineapple tarts for me, and the sugar cookies Eddie's grandmother used to make for them at Christmas.

Etiwanda Gardens in Pink, Loose Stones, and Logan in the Hole

We visited Etiwanda Gardens to see it set up for a quincinera -which is only differs from a wedding setup (according to Eddie) by having less flowers. Apparently Eddie just has to see things set up for him to get the picture. I'm buying him a bride magazine to peruse... They had pink table toppers with matching chair ribbons. From the ceiling hung strands of lights and some translucent floaty looking material...tulle? We took pix I'll post them later. I wounder if I could work lanterns into the decorations...I've always liked the way they look. I need to find a book of flower arrangements to see how easy or difficult it would be to design my own... And speaking to Rita on the way to the beach gave me hope of affordable flowers.

Follwing the Gardens, we headed to Jared's to look at wedding bands. If you ever have to go to Jared's with a kid, the playroom they have is fully stocked. TV/DVD, additional TV for game system, toy box of various vehicles, a climbing tower, coloring books! I probably had as much fun as Logan.

Eddie looked at some bands; he found that he liked the Tungsten bands, the darker color seemingly more manly. We looked at some rings for me... Because my center stone sticks out, none of the rings fit flush against it... Which means either we do a custom ring or I stick with the engagement ring as a wedding ring, which would actually be fine with me!

While we were at Jared's we thought we might as well have my ring cleaned. And good thing we did! Two of the diamonds in my ring were loose! The center stone and one of the side diamonds...eep. It's been all of two weeks! This ring is much too high maintenance for me!

The Story So Far

Tuesday, August 18th - the proposal, resizing, Boiling Crab and Crawfish "Mrs. Gonzales - It's about time", showing the ring to the Gonzaleses and The Colony
Wednesay, August 19th - 6 AM visit to Melissa, school people, dinner with JWo the Ngs
Thursday, August 20th - calls to various relatives and friends
Friday, August 21st - first venue - Bridges
Saturday, August 22nd - dinner with the parentals @ Black Angus
Sunday, August 23rd - wedding websites, guest lists
Monday, August 24th - The Knot
Tuesday, August 25th - Etiwanda Gardens, Michael's for invitation supplies
Wednesday, August 26th - stood up at the Mitten Building, JoAnns for wedding colors
Thursday, August 27th - Gazebo Flower Shop in Canyon Crest closes at 5:30, we discover at 5:48