A Cornucopia of Mundane Morsels

It looks like we will be using A Sound Choice Entertainment for our DJ. The price is much more reasonable than that of Eric Wright, and they have been much more responsive to our communication, unlike Eric Wright.

Also, I really need to get shoes. Why do all the bridal shops sell the same five pairs of shoes? And why do they all cost $110 a pair?! And why can't I find any open-toe shoes with wide heels that don't look like this:

And why do all the awesome shoes have paper-thin heels like this that are certain to trap me in the soft grass as I walk down the aisle?

That aside, I am WAY excited about the honeymoon now that Ian is in charge of planning it. I am going to drink mai tais in my bathing suit on a sunset cruise around Molokai. I will snorkel and NOT require professional rescue because I wanted to spot a shark, I will lay on the hot sand and probably get a heinous sunburn, I will eat fish tacos and attempt to stand on a surfboard. I will do nothing that has anything to do with work of any kind. I can't wait.

It will be quite the welcome break following all of this wedding stuff, which is somehow becoming less exciting and creative and more tricky and stressful. Like the shoe thing. I am not amused to find that my primary concern as of late has to do with foot adornment.

Oh! I met Page Bender, our florist/decor planner and I am totally in love. She is going to make our wedding so beautiful and so US. She knows exactly the atmosphere we want and is going to pull it off SO much better than we could by ourselves. She is awesome.

-Lisa

Aloha

We are going the more affordable route since money is not our strong suit. Here is the rundown on what we are doing:

August 26 -
Leave Portland for Molokai
[Airfare changed since Saturday but it should be between $500-$550 for both of us]

Arrive here:


Spend 5 nights in a pretty condo
[$600 - $800, depending on if we rent a condo with a security deposit]

Here are some places I am leaning toward (Lisa has yet to see them since I am doing this at work)
http://paniolohalecondo.com/index.html - cheap and simple
http://molokairentals.net/one-bedroom.html
http://molokai-condos.net/studio.html
http://molokai-vacation.com/accommodation.htm
http://mymolokaicondo.net/

August 31 -
Take this http://molokaiferry.com/ferry.html to Maui where we will become stereotypical tourists for four days.
[$80 - ferry to Maui, $500 - lodging, $60 - Tacky Hawaiian shirt and margaritas for Ian]

September 3 - Fly home
[$500ish]

It may not be the cheapest but I have found several sites where one can itemize a honeymoon and then register for it like one would do at Target, just more fun.
Here are some of those (the latter does not charge a service fee):
http://www.honeymoonwishes.com/
http://www.giftpile.com
In addition to that I am going to crank out some artwork and any sales will be put into this fund. . . assuming there are sales. Optimism.

Love,
Ian

The Other 2

Here are the other two groomsmen:



Luke Denby
We have lived in 3 different houses together.
He like to eat meat and play video games.



Andrew Driscoll
He's the new guy.
There aren't many pictures of us so here is him looking at what I one day hope to be.
Its a Klingon.
(Yes, Mrs. Hunt, your future son-in-law is a nerd.)

Honeymoon news to come. Here is a hint to what we decided on: It rhymes with Bolokai Myland and its in Hawaii. Lepers?

Best Man/Men

Since half of this people reading this do not know much about my friends I have decided to begin introducing everyone to my men of grooming. Is that the correct term? Yes, it is now.

So without further ado, I present to you. . .

Brian Nolan!


Brian has been my best friend for roughly ten years now. He has stood by my side through thick and thin (This is actually very literal in my case). He is a strapping young lad who himself is engaged to a lovely lady named Kristen. I love him like a brother.

But thats not all folks. I have two best men! You heard right. Along with changing cake for cupcake and not doing the chicken dance, I am shirking another tradition by having two best men. However, this next one will not be toasting during the reception due to shyness. I give you:

Peter Stran!

Peter has been my friend just as long as Brian and has been a constant in my life since freshman year in high school when I spent every weekend on his couch. I love him like another brother. Probably a younger brother.



Note: In the picture at the bottom, please forgive my terrible appearance as I was overweight and it was the first time my skin had seen sun that year.

Hi Parents

So there has been a lot of serious talk recently of the more mundane aspects of this wedding (color, reception, dress, etc.) so I have decided to jazz it up by talking about the main reason for getting married: the HONEYMOON!

Lisa and myself (Ian) have been discussing various possible options for the grand getaway and have decided that the most appealing of all has been:

Hope Town Lodge


My parents have been here before and the jealousy I felt when they returned was indescribable. I want others to feel that amount of jealousy when Lisa and I (Ian) return from our honeymoon.
The ocean front cabana rentals are $1295 weekly and, since I know absolutely nothing about prices for vacations, I think that is quite affordable. I am sure since Ma and Pa have been there before they can send a few price cutting tips our way. What does everyone think?

Awesome?

Yes, correct answer!

Important Announcement

I love Ian! He is the best.

I can't wait to marry you, you little rascal.
-Lisa

Ian is Posting

I hope I am doing this correctly.

Well after getting no response from my cousin, Father Paul, Lisa and I have asked my father, Richard A. Seniff, to preside over the ceremony. By doing this I, Ian D. Seniff, am assuring that not a single eye will be dry once he is finished.

My father is one of the most influential people in my life and any success I have achieved, any strength of character I possess, I owe 95% of it to this man. He is more than just my father, he is an unyielding source of inspiration to me. I cannot think of anyone who I would rather have officiate over the most important event of my life.

Here is a link to verify both his ability to speak in public and his radiant smile:

http://www.hcc-nd.edu/visitors/news/archive/74/

-Ian

(Mr. Seniff, we are both so honored and thrilled to have you marry us. It means so much to us both. Thank you!! -Lisa)

On the subject of colors...

Here are some color palette ideas I ran across that seem to fit with the general feel I have in mind. Comments? Suggestions?

Poppies will put them to sleep

I also contacted Page, Vibrant Table's talented florist to set up an appointment. This means we need to nail down those colors beforehand. What do you think of these?

Ivory

Champagne

And Gold!Well, I guess that's not really quite the color I was looking for, but Google can be kind of hit and miss sometimes.

Please. No Chicken Dance.

I emailed Eric Wright again today requesting a consultation. He let me know that he is open for our date, but he has yet to get back to me to set up a meeting. Ho hum.

Another option seems to be A Sound Choice Entertainment, another service recommended by Eric Sandstrom of Vibrant Table Catering and Events, our caterer and wedding coordinator. I received a packet from them with tons of information, including options for us to choose their level of involvement ranging from "do the chicken dance with us"
to "do not speak." So this is a viable alternative to the WAY professional Eric Wright, who also could potentially be quite a bit out of our price range. I say this because I just found out he has also performed at private celebrations for the likes of Kevin Costner and Slyvester Stallone.

I think essentially all we need is a person with a microphone who knows how to hook up a speaker system and plug in our iPod. We could say "please no chicken dance" and "just play the music" and I think it would turn out just fine.

A little cupcake adventure!

You will rue the day you ever had wedding cake after you taste and gaze upon these cupcakes. As Kaye-mom can now testify, they are WAY better. And might I say, much more charming.

Here is a list of reasons they are awesome, stolen from their website:

* We have a menu that changes monthly to take advantage of fresh and seasonal ingredients
* We are a locally owned family business
* We bake from scratch daily
* We make all our garnishes by hand
* We never use shortening
* We make fresh marshmallows and graham crackers from scratch
* We candy our own lemon, orange,and lime wedges
* We buy locally grown roses and always candy them by hand
* We create new cupcake menu items every day
* We use fresh whole eggs
* We use Pure Bourbon Madagascar Vanilla
* We use Amarena Cherries imported from Italy

Personally, I would eat the Downtown Cupcake Brown every day for the rest of my life if I had the money and metabolism.

All Wright already

We found the DJ we'd like to use and we like him a TON. Why are DJs so awful and cheesy? Eric Wright may possibly be the only non-obnoxious DJ in all of North America. As a point of comparison, here is another Portland DJ, chosen to represent 99.7% of the local talent.

I'm waiting for a call back from Eric Wright this week to go over pricing and contract information. I'll keep you updated!

For your viewing enjoyment

I was looking around the internet at photographers the other day and happened upon two that had recently worked out at Sauvie Island on Kruger's Farm! The pictures above are by Evrim Icoz, another great photographer, and below are pictures from
Soren Coughlin-Glaser Photography along with a link to more of her farm pictures.

Coughlin-Glaser Kruger's Farm Album





We're so excited!

Craig Mitchelldyer, my other fiance.

A couple of days ago we hired The Photographer after meeting with several other very talented photographers. This one is THE BEST! He took this one of us as a courtesy:



Actuallly, we took this. You see why we need a photographer. His photos are copyrighted of course, so here is a link to his photography blog in case you'd like to see his more recent work.

I love the way he captures personality and emotion. He does it much more artfully than most (if not all) of the other photographers in his price bracket. Side note: photography is EXPENSIVE! I am guessing that the final photographs will be etched into shiny blocks of solid gold. I think that is standard nowadays.

A whirlwind adventure

Kaye-mom came to visit this weekend to assist with some wedding plans. I must say, it was a quite pleasant and helpful visit (wedding dress and bridal party attire, cupcakes, planner books), despite the fact that we maybe drove each other a little nuts (rehearsal dinner locations, guest accommodations.) I suppose wedding planning will do that to even the most rational, patient and loving family members. I look forward to seeing her again in June!

I will try to post today or tomorrow with pictures and information of interest concerning local hotels for parent and/or guest accommodations as well as possible rehearsal dinner locations. Check back soon!