Message from the Management

Sometimes it feels like life moves this fast. Often, I am wrapped up in the mechanics of living my life that I don't get a chance to record it. I am as usual behind on my blog. I will blog as close to chronological order as possible.

On another note, STOP RIDING ME ABOUT UPDATING MY BLOG, CICELY.
I'm writing as fast as I can.

A one-time thing

Friday August 8, 2008 (Part 2)

Prologue
In the midst of our discussions about designing her escort cards and favor tags, Mia got some bad news. Her day of coordinator fired her. I didn't even think that was possible. Keep in mind this was a month before her wedding. The coordinator even went so far as to say it was because another bride had hired her for one of her more expensive packages. Who does that?!

She was in a bad spot. As an 08/08/08 bride, she was going to be hard-pressed to find a replacement. Recalling my own DOC drama last year, I told her that I would "help" if she couldn't find anyone else. I was partially hoping she would find a qualified coordinator. As luck would have it, she didn't. When she emailed me to ask if my offer was still good, I quickly replied "yes". Inwardly, I was a bit panic-stricken. I AM NOT A COORDINATOR. Sure I have been the go-to-gal for many a wedding, but I am not deluded enough to think that makes me qualified to be a coordinator.

Thankfully, I have a lot of helpful friends. As I mentioned in previous post, my dear friend Paola is a highly competent and successful coordinator. She graciously sent me a copy of her one of her very extensive timelines. I filled in the blanks and felt a little better. My other friend Jeannette agreed to help me the day of the wedding with all the small details. Lastly, another friend Keren offered to let me spend the night at her house. The wedding was in Ventura which was about 1.5 hr away from my house. I was ready to go.

Day of the Wedding
Poor Jeannette had caught a summer cold and I was flying solo. The wedding was scheduled for 5pm. I grabbed a lunch of champions at Weinerschnitzel. Didn't get the memo? 2 corndogs are the thing to eat before working a wedding. I arrived at the Ventura Beach Marriott at 1pm with all my gear in tow. I had 6 cases of mason jar favors, a bridal emergency kit, and other miscellanea.

The four hours leading up to the ceremony went by in a blur. Because it was a hotel wedding, I was fortunate to only have to oversee the setup. I didn't have to do any of the heavy lifting. I did do a lot of running around. Here's a peek at some of the details I oversaw.






The ceremony was beautiful and went off without a hitch. I only watched a small portion of it because I was attending to some reception details. This also saved me from the waterworks that I am prone to have at ceremonies. Here are a few shots of the ceremony.

The new Mr. & Mrs. M - Mia & Gian!

We got the reception started and I finally got to take some breaks. I got to eat and chat with the knotties at my table. I went back and forth between my duties as a coordinator and my time as guest. The reception had some nice personal touches such as a slideshow and Father-Daughter Salsa dance. This crowd partied hard and the dancefloor was rarely empty. Here are some photos of the reception.

Mia with the girls from the knot

My tasty dinner - Petit Filet with Crabcake Tower

Gian's sister, her husband and various nieces and nephews getting down

Knotties partying it up

Mother of the Bride and Mother of the Groom showing the crowd how it's done

Me chatting with Danielle and Katie.
Proof that I was actually there. I looked so disheveled that I refused to be in anyone's pictures.

It was a beautiful celebration. I was glad to have been a part of their day. It was both exciting and exhausting. I was so pooped that I slept most of the day Saturday. After this one wedding, I'm sure I'll stick to design work. I'll leave the coordinating to the professionals. Congrats again to Mia & Gian!

Special Thanks to Mia's awesome vendors who made my job easy and the day go smoothly.
Venue: Ventura Beach Marriott
DJ: Matt at Slater Entertainment
Florist: Shell's Petals
Cake: Jana's Creative Cakes
Officiant: Ken Craft of Dream Day Weddings
Photographer: Dave Luchansky of A Candid Affair
Videographer: Video Keepsakes of Beverly Hills

Birthday at the Bowl - Recap

Sunday June 22nd - A recap

First, I must make a statement. I really am not an attention whore. I know this may seem contrary since I had two birthday celebrations this year. I have some explanations for this. One is that I haven't really celebrated my birthday in years. The last couple of years I haven't done anything exciting except have a nice dinner with Rob. Keep in mind Rob and I have lots of nice dinners. This birthday extravaganza makes up for lost celebrations.

The other reason for the second birthday celebration is that I wanted to include Rob. He was a bit miffed when I told him that I had planned an all-girl birthday party. He knew that all-girl meant he or anyone else's husband/fiance were not welcome. I also wanted to include my newfound friends' significant others and some of our other friends.

The Hollywood Bowl seemed like the perfect choice. Music, picnic, and friends - what more could you ask for? An added bonus, Thievery Corporation was performing.

Here's a description of the group from Wikipedia.

Thievery Corporation is a Washington, D.C.-based recording artist and DJ duo consisting of Rob Garza and Eric Hilton and their supporting artists. Their music style is dub, acid jazz, Indian classical and Brazilian (such as bossa nova) fused together with a lounge aesthetic.

The plan was great in theory. Rob was going to make a delicious spread of appetizers and cheeses. Everyone else was just going to contribute cash to pay for the food. Then, Rob had to go out of town. Our scrumptious picnic delight went out the door. I would have cooked, but no one would have eaten. I pride myself in knowing my strengths and weaknesses. Cooking is most definitely not one of my strengths.

To compensate, I decided to provide liquid refreshment. LOTS and LOTS of liquid refreshment.
I try not to do anything halfway. My friend Kevin and I went bonkers at the grocery store. In my wheeled cooler, I had placed 1 bottle of vodka, 3 bottles of rum, 5 bottles of San Pellegrino Sparkling Mineral Water, 1 bottle of Iced Tea, and 1 bottle of Pink Lemonade. The idea was that our companions could make Italian Sodas or the mixed drink of their choice. All this variety was not without its price. The cooler weighed a ton and poor Kevin got stuck with the duty of having to tow it up the hill to our seats.

Margarita Cookies - photo by Jordana Hazel

There was an abundance of food. Natalie made a delicious orzo salad. Jess brought all kinds of goodies including some very strong jello shots. Aside from the beverages, Kevin bought a sandwich platter from Dave's Chillin' and Grillin' from our 'hood. The highlights for me were Jordana's Margarita Cookies and the cupcakes Carmela generously picked up from Yummy Cupcakes.

The show was fantastic. I had my fair share to drink and danced my butt off. It was fun. Sadly, no too many others drank. So, Kevin, Jess, Eddie, and I ran people over with the my cooler on the way back to our shuttle bus. It was not a pretty sight.

Here are some photos from the festivites.

View from our seats - photo by Jordana Hazel

Yours truly - photo by Jordana Hazel

A quick snapshot of Jordana

John and Keren, who was also celebrating her birthday this past weekend

Natalie & Greg

Kevin hiding behind his beverage, Eddie, & Jess

George & Carmela - photo by Jordana Hazel

Chris, Jordana's huband - photo by Jordana Hazel

Last, but not least Joellaann - photo by Jordana Hazel

I had a blast. The only thing I could have wished for is for Rob to have been there. I'm a so excited because this show marks the beginning of Bowl Season. This is only the first of many shows that I wish to attend. Who wants to join me for more?

Birthday Blowout - A Recap

Birthday Portrait by Jordana

Typically, my birthday celebrations consist of a quiet dinner with Rob and one or two friends. This year I decided to turn my birthday into an two-part Extravaganza.

The first part was on Thursday, my actual birthday. I had invited a few of my closest girlfriends to meet me for dinner and drinks. I haven't had an all-girl birthday since I was 6.

We started the evening at Camilo's California Bistro, which is in my 'hood. Service was unbelievably slow, but the fantastic company more than made up for it. I ordered one of the specials - Grouper with prawns. It was delectable.

My yummy dinner

Here are my lovely dinner companions.

Joellaann & Natalie

Paola & Janice

Keren & Marisa

Jenny & Jeannette

Wendy, Ali, & Jordana

As if dinner and fantastic conversation weren't enough, these marvelous ladies presented me with a cake, a card, and a gift.

photo by Jordana Hazel

Although not aesthetically pleasing, the cake was delicious. Jordana baked the cake. The buttercream frosting was delish although not "built for the heat" and melted en route to dinner. The fact that the cake was imperfect and a hilarious story to go with, made it the perfect cake for me.

I loved the card. It was hilarious and fitting.

Here is my birthday gift. A Craft Robo - custom die-cutter!


These unbelievable ladies got together to purchase my gift. Sneaky Wendy had asked me a few weeks prior what I was planning to purchase next for my design business. I had no idea that she was stealthily gathering intel. I was so surprised that I started to tear a little. As an added bonus and inside joke, Jeannette gave me a plethora of accessories. Rob will be pleased.

After dinner and cake, we headed over to Colorado Wine Company.

Paola, Jordana, Ali, & Keren

Natalie, Janice, Wendy & Jeannette

We got there a little later than I had planned. Thankfully, Jen the owner took care of us. We gabbed and drank until nearly midnight. The only reason why we didn't stay out later is that poor Jen had to close up shop and go home. We had kept the place open a half hour past closing time.

This is one of the best birthdays I've had in years. The celebration was better than any that I could have imagined. Thanks again, ladies.

I'm a dork related to dorks

Recap - June 11, 2008

Warning: This post contains absolutely silly and ridiculous behavior. This is not for those lacking a sense of humor. No model home furniture was damaged in the taking of these photographs. View at your own risk.

After my grandma's birthday lunch, my cousins Janine & Jo, my brother Nate, and I decide to go out and run some simple errands. On the way to Michael's, we decided to check out my sister Cathee's house that is under construction. It started out innocent enough. Then we got silly and each person felt the need to be progressively more ridiculous than the last. Here are the photos from the silliness that ensued.

Entries to come

Last week was one of the most hectic weeks of my life. I was buried in design work, packed my house up for fumigation, had a Bachelorette Party in Vegas, and a wedding yesterday. I am pooped.

Now, I have to unpack my house and see if my laptop has bit the big one:( Once I'm done with all of that I'm Daniella's, Jenny's and Frances' design slave. Who knew that one week could be so exhausting?

A Sunny Sunday Afternoon

I have to admit that I am typically not a fan of bridal showers. I find them too cutesy and nauseating. I can only stand but so many silly games like "Make a Wedding Dress Out of Toilet Paper" or "How Many Words Can We Make Out of the Bride's and Groom's Names". Less I forget, there is the gift-opening. It's like a kid's birthday party only the presents are boring and the bride is feigning excitement over a garlic press or citrus peeler. I have such an aversion to bridal showers that I carefully instructed my maid-of-honor Cicely to NOT throw me a shower. Additionally, I have not attended a bridal shower in 8 years. When I am invited, I courteously send a gift off the registry and make an excuse that I am busy.

Today I decided to foray back into the world of bridal showers. I have somewhat ulterior motives for attending this shower. First, I have become good friends with the Bride, Wendy and her Maid-of-Honor, Janice. Secondly, I designed the invites. Lastly, when Janice told me her plans for the event, I was impressed and intrigued. Janice styled a beautiful event in the backyard of her new home. The overall look of the event was based on yellow, white, and black color scheme with the use of a damask pattern. It was beautifully executed. Rather than describe it, here are some photos.

The beautiful tablescape
Linens (with exception of the damask tablecloth), tableware, glassware, tables, and chivari chairs were rented from Town & Country Rentals.
Paper floral napkin rings were made by Janice ala Martha Stewart.
Flowers by me (Recognize them from my previous post?)

The favors - Lemon-flavored Mexican Wedding Cookies
Janice custom dyed the fabric. Debra special order the cookies. I designed the tags.

One of my other attempts at Floral Arranging.

The food was amazing. I am, of course, a teeny bit biased. I volunteered Rob to cook for this party. He's a catering chef and I told him he needed "practice". Janice wanted an upscale picnic. Rob created a delicious, light Mediterranean spread.

Here are some photos of Rob and the food:

Rob in action


Grilled Halomi cheese with Rustic Bread


Fresh Taboleh, Hummus, Pita Chips, and Lavash bread


Dolmas, Olives, Marinated Mushrooms, and Marinated Artichoke Hearts


Roasted Eggplant with Feta over a bed of couscous

Luleh (marinated ground beef) and Salmon Kabob


Roasted Vegetables


Janice's Israeli Couscous Salad


Dessert - Cake by Jordana

I have to say I was more than pleasantly surprised. Janice requested we wear black, yellow, or white in any combination. This made for great photo ops. We only played 1 game "How well do you know the bride", which was was the source of much hilarity. Apparently, Wendy had quite a good time in her single days. The gifts were interesting and not your typical bridal party fare. The alcohol was plentiful. The majority of the party was spent gabbing and hanging out. As you can tell from these photos, a good time was had by all.

Janice & Wendy

My photo op with the the bride-to-be

In case there is any doubt as to how good of a time I had, this is how late I stayed.