Nails of Love

It's been a bit of a time since I've updated this.  I guess I've been so busy getting ready for the wedding that I haven't had as much time to actually document the process.  But here's the latest....

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So, I finally gave in and got fake nails.  I've never had fake nails before in my life, nor have I ever had nails this long.  And by long I mean above my fingertip.  It feels weird.  And it actually hurts a bit.  I'm not exactly sure how much I like the nails.  I thought they would make my hands look a lot sexier, but I think they make them look old.  And like the manicurist said, my fingers weren't really made for fake nails because my nails are about the size of an infant.  She wasn't even sure if they would work, but they did.  So, I had tiny fake nails now.  And, of course, I messed them up when getting up from the chair....  But I least I don't have to listen to people tell me how ugly my nails looks, which will be a nice change.

As for the ceremony, we have decided to go with two rituals/traditions, one that is common in Hispanic weddings (and common in Honduras) and another that is more common in African-themed weddings.  I know that no one in the wedding is from any country in Africa, nor African American, but I thought the tradition sounded so nice and symbolized strong wedding values that we went with it anyway. 

The Honduran tradition we are including is the Arras Ceremony.  It's kind of like an old fashion dowry idea.  Ivan will present me with 13 gold coins to symbolize "what's mine is yours and what's yours is mine".  The 13 coins stand for the 12 months of the year and then an extra coin for charity.  I thought it was a nice ceremony and although Ivan's never heard of it (he's never really been to a wedding), I know it's common in Honduras so I wanted to include something Honduran.

The African tradition we are using is the Jumping the Broom.  My mom has made us an old-fashioned broom out of sticks and branches from the maple trees around her house.  She tied them all together and then we're going to have guests decorate the broom with yellow and white ribbons (to match the wedding colors).  At the end of the ceremony, after we've kissed, the broom will be placed in the aisle and Ivan and I will hold hands, count to five, and jump over the boom.  It pretty much symbolizes jumping into our new life together and sweeping out the old.

So, now that we've gotten those things taken care of we just have a few more things to work on this week.  My aunt nicely volunteered to create the programs, so she's working on those now, and then we have to put some ribbons together, pick our ceremony music, and make the table tents.  We finally got our wedding rings on Saturday in a bit of a rush, but luckily we found some that we both liked.  We also need to still buy ties for Ivan and his best man.  We'll be doing that tonight...a bit last minute.

I think that's about it.  I can't believe I'm getting married in 5 days!!  Wowzers has time flown by!!  I'm so excited.  I also picked up my dress and it's hanging in my sister's room just waiting for me to put on.  Ivan and I are driving up to Vermont tomorrow - it's about 9 hours - and then we'll do the rest of the prep stuff.  Yeah - I can't wait!

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DJ, Dress Fitting, Ceremony Vows

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Wowzers has a lot been happening in the wedding department these last few days...and I'm sure it's just gonna get crazier.  Now that we have such a short amount of time before the big day, I'm realizing just how much I have left to do. 

A LOT.

My dad booked a DJ so that's a bit of a relief.  I can stop downloading iTunes songs to play at the reception.  Plus, someone can introduce us and things of that nature.  And maybe make everyone do YMCA and Limbo - fun wedding favorites.... :-)  Ooohh, and the Chicken Dance.

I also had my last dress fitting.  I have pretty much given up on losing weight and toning up for the wedding.  What ya see is what ya get - I think I'm a good 5 pounds heavier than I was when I started my diet.  Haha.  And I haven't lifted a weight in who knows how many years - maybe since my sisters wedding in 2008...  Oh wait, I think I lifted one up at Target to see the price and then set it right back down. 

My nails are hopeless too.  Sorry nails - you lose.  Oh wait, what am I talking about - I don't have any nails.  I seem to have eaten them all off.  Again.  That was a no-win goal if I've ever seen one!

What else have I been working on??  Oh my ceremony and translations.  I finally translated the vows, the ring exchange, and the Arras Ceremony into Spanish.  We are not doing the entire ceremony in Spanish and since Ivan already knows what everything means - since I've asked him about everything a gazillion times - he doesn't need a translation the day of.  Along with the Las Arras, we are also incorporating a Jumping the Broom ceremony which I am quite excited about.  It seems that it is mainly an African American tradition, but I think it's really cool so I'm incorporating it into my ceremony.  I like the idea of borrowing traditions from other cultures and working them into my ceremony.

Other exciting news - my cake topper is done!!  Sophia did an AMAZING job and I LOVE it.  I can't wait to show you.  I have pics but I kinda want it to be a surprise at the wedding so you'll have to wait.  It's great though - you will love it.

Ok, I guess I'll stop with the update.  There's a bunch more stuff going on and I'm super excited about all of it and getting a little stressed about it too. 

Wedding = gray hairs!!

RSVP Tears

No one told me how sad I would be when people people RSVPed "no".