Who Knew?

Today I learned something new about Jon:

He does an excellent imitation of the "Mah-Na Mah-Na" guy from that Muppet Show song. Cleaning up the kitchen after dinner was never so much fun .....

Would You Like to See Our Photos?

I've been complaining - while, perhaps "complaining" is too strong a word. "Lamenting" is probably more accurate - that we've run out of people to show our wedding photos to. Even my grandparents in Florida have seen them.

So this past Easter Sunday, we were all excited (OK, I was all excited) because we were going to visit relatives who have not seen the wedding photo book. (To be fair to Jon, he does enjoy looking at them, but it's not in the forefront of his mind to show them off to others.)

And I forgot to bring the book.

Doh!

Soon enough, though, we will be in Wisconsin, for Super-Awesome-Wedding-Fest-A-Palooza Part 2 (Part Deux) where there will be scores of people (how much is a score? 20?) who will be only too delighted to see them. Or at least they'll pretend to be delighted because I'll be in my wedding dress that day (might as well get some use out of it) and most people are culturally programed to humor brides/girls in wedding dresses. Maybe men in wedding dress too, I don't know.

Married and On Vacation

Jon and I went to Florida for a week (glorious, glorious sunshine! and not a speck of snow) at the end of January.

From Florida

We were with my grandparents and parents most of the time - well, actually all the time. I'm ridiculously close to my family, and we get along great; thankfully Jon fits in perfectly and doesn't mind that my grandparents spend a lot of time talking very loudly about pills and doctor appointments. Grandma makes the best breakfasts ever, so she's allowed to do as she pleases as far as we're concerned.

I went snorkeling for the first time, and absolutely loved it. Jon and I spent a lot of time gurgling and pointing to all the colorful fish and coral. It was fabulous.

Shortly before leaving Key West, Jon and I found a bar with $2 mojitos, but before you get really excited - yes, they tasted exactly like $2 mojitos. Still, I was in Key West drinking a lovely, tropical drink at a cozy bar ... I won't complain.

We would, however, like to offer this dare to anyone going to Key West: go around and find a bar that has live music that's not just an overweight white guy with a guitar. We dare you.

Because it was Florida, I took insane amounts of pictures of alligators, anhingas, herons, and flowers. Special bonus photos: manatees! I highly suggest visiting Manatee Park in Fort Meyer on a "cold morning." The Manatees take refuge in the canal because the water is much warmer there than in the river or gulf. We saw dozens of manatees. Jon and I were mesmerized and had to be dragged away by my parents.

J & J on Holiday

The Hartwell newlyweds (almost 4 months!) are off to warm climates tomorrow.

We will try our best not to get sunburned and spend a glorious week in sunny Florida. Manitee watching is on the top of my list, while our weekend in Key Largo is a close second. Weather and water-temperature permitting there will be snorkling in our future! :-)

There will, of course, be photos.

Stay tuned!

Our mini-moon was so wonderful. I love looking at our pictures - and playing with all the fun features on Picasa!

Post Wedding Update

We still have a living room filled with boxes (much to Charlie's glee).

But we did purchase a kitchen cart/island (which now stores are new kitchen appliances), and I did manage to organize half the pantry. Including our new tools! Wahoo.

I see a lot of shelf-building in my future. Good use of the new miter saw, and good winter weekend projects. I can't wait!

Mini-Moon

Our too short stay in Ogonquit, Maine was wonderful!

Mini-Moon

Mr. & Mrs. Hartwell

Well, that's it, then. We're married. I probably don't have to say that it was a fabulous day.

Clearly it was.

But .... Now what? For nearly a year we've planned and plotted and looked forward to September 27, 2008. Despite the fact that our house is filled with boxes, something feels a bit empty, you know?

There's nothing to do now but ....

... plan the Wisconsin part!

Yeehaw!

Just wait until Summer 2009.

Jon and I can also get down to the business of planning the trip to Budapest.

In the meantime, of course, there's all the name-changing things for me to do.

Jennifer Jean Hartwell: It's going to take getting used to.

Almost There

Wow. 2 Days. That's all.

Crazy!

Bachelor Party

Jon was whisked away Saturday for a man-tastic afternoon. Jeremy arranged for them to all go F1 go-carting followed by dinner at Fire & Ice (yummy) and beer and baseball at some bar somewhere (for reasons of national security, apparently, I wasn't told which bar exactly).

So Jon has had his party and had a great time, even though he came in second-to-last (his dad - the guy down in front - came in last).

But as far as I'm concerned, Jon always wins.

Except at wii bowling. I totally kick his ass at wii bowling.

And Guitar Hero.

And Boggle.

And Scrabble.

Come to think of it, I'd probably beat him in a go-cart race too.

Is There a Fire Fighter in the House?

I'm all about safety and not burning buildings to the ground, but - honestly - sometimes you can get carried away with precautions.

Jon and I decided we wanted a unity candle ceremony. It's pretty and symbolic - and yes, there's a tiny flame involved.

Apparently, strictly speaking, The City of Boston does not allow "open flames" (oh my god! a lit candle!) in any buildings without a fireman on guard or complicated, hard-to-find-self-extinguishing-wear-little-hats-candles.

Give me a break. Last time I checked, most churches use candles. Are they exempt due to a God clause or something?

HOWEVER, all is not lost.

Jon and I considered replacing the unity candle ceremony with an interpretive dance accompanied by Enya, but Rich-the-event-guy says we can get away with it.

Hey, I'm willing to light it and then blow it out. I don't care. I decide when the symbolism begins and ends after all. This is not an eternal flame (The Bangles, anyone?)

Hooray for reason and good sense. And for Rich-the-event-guy. He's awesome.

Oh My

These were the words that slipped out when my google count down gadget greeted me on my home page.

19 days.

Oh god.

I'm not stressed, really. I'm not worried. I just can't believe the day is finally at hand.

OK, I lied.

I am stressed and worrying, but not for any good reason. It's just what I do before any event. At work, just as everyone else in the office is calming down, I get stressed. And then, a day or so before the event, a great calm comes over me. While everyone else is suddenly plagued by last-minute worries, I float by, competely serenly. I worry about the planning, not the execution.

In fact, back in high school when I did theater, I didn't suffer from stage fright until I walked off the stage.

Jon is fine, I think. He participated in the last big planning session: the ceremony. We now know what happens when and who says what. I think Jon feels the event could happen tomorrow and we would be perfectly ready.

This is not true, of course, but I'm glad he has that much faith in my planning skills. (Of course, I am the one who got really excited about camping because it was a chance for me to make lists. And my friends will never let me live down the "road trip binder" from our senior year spring break trip. Hey, we were prepared. That's all I'm saying.)

I'm taking lots of deep breaths. And trying not to look at my count down gadget.

19 days.

Oh boy.

The Count Down Rolls On ....

There were two delinquent groomsmen I had to harass on Tuesday for not ordering their tuxes. I didn't like having to send them threatening emails (I believe the phrase "plague of locusts" was used in one case), but things are getting serious, people.

I've scheduled hair appointments for 6 (one bride - ahem, me - and 5 maids) and convinced Dear Mother to do likewise (well, just 1 for her, that is). Mom also finally decided on her outfit - and she looks smashing, I must say.

This Saturday I'm doing the trial run of hair and makeup. What do I do for the rest of the day after being made to look so pretty?

Next Wednesday Jon and I meet with Rich-the-event-guy to finalize the plans for the ceremony and reception.

Speaking of the ceremony ....

I've decided that I will walk down the aisle to Handel's "The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba" and Jon and I will walk back down the aisle to the fourth movement from Beethoven's 5th Symphony.

It's all so exciting! We can't wait ....

To Do List Shortened

It's been a productive weekend here in wedding-fest land.

Friday Jon and I took a half-day from work in order to visit City Hall (motto: "Come on in and stand in line.") and apply for a marriage license.

We also went wedding ring shopping (the people at DePrisco Jewelers thought we were nuts to order rings so late, but how long does it take, really, to make a simple white-gold band?)

Despite spending about 1 hour total in various lines at City Hall, the whole process was very quick. Jon and I had plenty of time to visit the New England Aquarium. We're trying hard to do non-wedding-related activities to keep our lives in balance. And nothing is less wedding related than a sea cucumber.

At least, I'm having a hard time thinking of anything less related. Go ahead and try.

I went for my first dress fitting on Saturday morning. KellyM came with to help me put on all the gear. The woman at Threads in Roslindale is fabulous. She is so quick and calm. We were there barely half an hour if that.

And today Jon and I purchased groomsmen gifts.

And no, they're not sea cucumbers.

It Smells Minty

A big part of my wedding plan strategy has been "simplicity." As Thoreau-like as possible, within modern reason and accommodating my wish to have FUN (it's always good to capitalize FUN for extra emphasis). But, you know, no ice sculptures or mini brides 'n grooms (hello, creepy), or string quartets, or a full camera crew. No stretched Hummer limos, or wreaths of exotic flowers. Black tie is not encouraged and there is definitely not a professional wedding planner.

HOWEVER (more emphasis)

Because of Mother Dearest (who is wonderfully wonderful and wondrous and sometimes just causes wonder) and her desire for us to have a bookish theme (everyone dress up like your favorite author! - just kidding), all guests will receive:

THE PROGRAM BOOKLET TO END ALL PROGRAM BOOKLETS

Or rather

Jon and Jenny's Super-Awesome-Wedding-Fest-A-Palooza: The Novel

Mother has even learned book binding techniques (an elementary school teacher can retire from teaching but not from being a teacher) in order to make The Novel more bookish.

And of all the myriad materials one could use to bind a book, what does Mother like best?

Dental floss. "It's thicker than plain thread. And it smells minty!"

Summoning up my inner Bridezilla, I refused the dental floss and asked her if she couldn't use gold or silver thread instead.

And Mother, being the most wonderful of mothers, agreed.

The End.

Busy

I'm not sure when I last posted. I've been too busy working on the wedding to write about it!

ONE MONTH AND 14 DAYS! EEEK!

Last night Jon and I picked out two readings, and we each choose someone to read. I won't spoil the surprise by saying what readings we have chosen, but I will say that one is by Shakespeare (and, no, it's not the sonnet you're thinking of) and one is by ee cummings (and yes, it's one of the readable ones).

As to ee cummings, I will say that it's not:

• "she being brand"
• "kitty"
• "next to of course god america"
• "nOw"
• "l(a"

Although, I love all of those (go look them up yourself if you're interested. Lazy people!)

Also, we did not choose "Walking Through the Woods on a Snowy Evening," a Robert Frost poem proudly on display at the function center called Promises to Keep which is up in New Hampshire, and where I Jon and I attended a wedding last year. The phrase "promises to keep" appears in the aforementioned poem, but that same poem - which I love, by the way - is one of the most depressing poems ever. The gist of which I feel is "my life sucks; but nature is peaceful; if only I could just lay down and die right here in quiet and solitude; but I've got too many things pulling me on; I have no choice but to trudge on, exhausted."

But this is about weddings, not literary criticism.

And I'm at work, not home, thus I shouldn't be writing this at all!

(P.S. I scheduled a meeting with Frank-the-DJ to discuss what to play and what not to play. Music requests gladly accepted, although I will not promise to honor them!)

Oooh! Mail!!!

The reply cards are rolling in! How exciting! Not only are we getting "real" mail every day but I get to make a spreadsheet to keep track of everyone's answers.

I love spreadsheets.

Slowly Jon and I are whittling away at the LIST OF THINGS TO DO. It's really the only thing I still use The Knot for - it is a handy reminder for all those little things (oh yeah .... we need to get a marriage license ....).

And I'm about half way through the thank you cards for the second bridal shower. Whew.

Jon and I also survived our first camping trip together. We managed to set up camp, weather a storm, and break camp without any shouting or bloodshed. I think that pretty much means we ace the compatibility test.

Less than two months to go (eek!). I have a lot of paper flowers to make .....

For me? Thank you!

I'm getting used to this bridal shower thing. It's not a bad gig, really.

Anyone want to throw me another party?

Also: invitations are in the mail! Such a sense of accomplishment!

And: the woman at the clerk's office who answers the phone "Marriage!" in a sharp, curt tone might want to improve her phone skills. I felt like apologizing. "I'm sorry we want to get married. Is it OK if we come by and apply for a marriage license?"

The Great Invitation Invitational

Yes, creating and mailing wedding invitations might just be the most hectic part of the whole wedding-planning process.

Not only do you have to make sure you invite your cousin and his wife and make sure you don't accidentally forget to send a Save the Date card to your godmother (ahem, Jon), but when your on-a-budget, diy-ers, you have to print them. You would think this is the easy part, and I wrongly assumed that too.

Getting a new printer and then having the wedding invitations be your first project on that printer - not recommended.

However, last night I finished printing out everything and have them almost all set. (So much crap that goes into an invitation: the actual invite, the response card and (stamped) envelope, information about the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner (for those who qualify), and then our after party invite.

I just need to pick up a few more stamps, and we're good to go!

Wahoo!

Am I Worried? A Little

I counted out 10 weeks until the wedding (approximately). 70+ days.

I've had a couple dreams about the wedding day. In both of them, Jon and I arrived at the "alter" and discovered we had never planned the ceremony. Oops.

I need to get busy to assuage these anxieties, and number one is to get the invitations in the mail.

Number two is to plan the ceremony!