I really do.
John
Vote for the place that employs both of us!!
If you’re on facebook, DO IT!! 
Chase is giving $25,000 grants to people who vote enough on Facebook and through other sites. Please vote – $25,000 would mean a lot to our company.
Ten Thousand Only
http://tenthousandonly.blogspot.com/
Sheesh! Things sure to seem to add up. We’re going to try to beat their goal (they actually didn’t make it) – I think it’s possible, as neither of us is so fixated on “Special Magical Fairy-Tale Specialness” – but it’s New York.
An update as to potential costs and plans:
Catering is looking like it’s going to be about $3000.00 minimum, unless we seriously cut the guest list.
Anj is seriously looking into using her mother’s wedding dress, with alterations and such, which will save money if indeed that does (or even can) end up happening.
Still looking into the venue, but since we’re planning on doing Bar B Que, it will probably be either completely outdoors, or a combination space. I don’t believe either of us wants to be in a room at, for example, a place like this. Our sincere goal is for everybody to have a good time and to celebrate love – neither of us is extremely comfortable with the idea of massive artifice – we do that stuff for a living.
-John
Italian Wedding Soup
John mentioned to me recently that he had never had Italian Wedding Soup. I promised him I’d make it for him…someday. He decided to take me up on that offer yesterday.
Below is the recipe I used that I got from good ole All Recipes dot com. It turned out really well! John supplemented the meal with his new adaptation of Herb Muffins, but infused with Bacon. I’ll let him post that one. All in all a great meal!!
(Update from John – I just cooked up some bacon in the microwave to crispy, chopped it up and substituted it for the parsley in the original recipe. Instead of Parmesan, I used cheddar! Oh, and I’ve discovered that Yogurt can substitute for buttermilk easily – just add some milk to get the viscosity the same!)
(Source: Mama’s Italian Wedding Soup)
Ingredients:
|
1 pound extra-lean ground beef
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup dried bread crumbs
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
cheese
1 teaspoon dried basil
|
3 tablespoons minced onion
2 1/2 quarts chicken broth
2 cups spinach – packed, rinsed and
thinly sliced
1 cup seashell pasta
3/4 cup diced carrots
|
Directions:
| 1. | In a medium bowl, combine the beef, egg, bread crumbs, cheese, basil and onion. Shape mixture into 3/4-inch balls and set aside. |
| 2. | In a large stockpot heat chicken broth to boiling; stir in the spinach, pasta, carrot and meatballs. Return to boil; reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring frequently, at a slow boil for 10 minutes or until pasta is al dente, and meatballs are no longer pink inside. Serve hot with Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top. |
For those of you who would like to support both of us!
The Snow Queen opens this weekend – Anj did the lights, and I did the sound and built the set! There’s lots of fun stuff in the show, and I think it’ll be something any family generally can enjoy! Be forewarned – it is a little scary!!
Manhattan Children’s Theater – in Tribeca. 52 White Street, between Broadway and Church.
Quick update
We are done with evening two of tech, and I’m reminded just how much I love working with my Fiancee! And that is all.
- John
Dream wedding…
I am no stranger to anxiety dreams. I’ve already had 2 wedding anxiety dreams this month. Last night involved it being the night before my wedding and no one was around to throw / attend my bachelor-ette party. Then I realized I hadn’t bought gifts for any of my bridal party so I wandered the streets of New York looking thru tacky gifts shops trying to find something suitable.
Cut to the day of my wedding and we realize we never got a reception place! We figured we would just crash the parish hall. (Which by the way, St. Augustine’s does have a parish hall, but even the priest thought it was un-suitable.) So we scrambled together decorations and a cake. Naturally we had forgotten to get a cake.
Of course I woke up before the actual event. Guess we better get serious about planning so I can sleep better. Or I should not post here right before bed.
-Anj
Sacraments and Typos;
Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church in Selma, Texas is awesome! And not so awesome. I called last week to request and updated copy of my baptismal certificate so we can get married properly in the Catholic Church. It arrived today!! However, there is an ‘e’ missing at the end of my name and a missing ‘n’ from my mother’s first name and a missing ‘e’ from her last name. I’m sure it’s fine, but I don’t want to get to heaven and get tossed back into Purgatory because of a spelling error!
Also, on the back where you list all the other sacraments you’ve received it says:
First Communion:
No notation.
Umm…spoiler alert: My first communion was at Our Lady of Perpetual Help. My Confirmation info is fine and I did that in Seattle..thousands of miles away from Texas. How did they not record my first communion?? I remember it very specifically because the day before we took our official communion, we got to ‘try’ the bread and wine. We were told that if we didn’t take the wine because we didn’t like the taste that would okay and our first communion would still ‘count’. So the next day I took the bread portion from the priest, turned left and saw my Dad (who is a deacon) with the wine cup and I did a wave or something and walked right past. I didn’t realize I probably devastated my father who was very excited to be administering part of this very important sacrament and I said ‘No thanks’ because I thought the wine was gross. (Boy, I wish I had that problem now!) I am hoping to repair this error by having Dad officiate our wedding ceremony.
I also noticed that on my baptismal certificate, there’s no space for reconciliation, aka, confession. I had to do that before communion. Maybe I need refresher course on sacraments. Or maybe OLPH does since there’s no notation of my first communion.
Hopefully, none of these minor mishaps prevent the process from continuing.
We will try to sort out the wedding date tomorrow….? This week…? I promise?
See!! Evidence!!
Location, location, location
We’ve chosen the location for the wedding ceremony: St. Augustine’s Church in Park Slope Brooklyn. Mom took some pics when she was here, so I’ll try to get photos up soon. I’ve been a parishioner there since moving to New York. It’s old and beautiful. Fr. Tom said we didn’t need to drag in a bunch of flowers. (Money saved!)
We’re racking our brain for a reception site. I recently saw that someone was doing an improv show at The Old Stone House in Brooklyn. Now that my mind is trained to go to websites and click on Rental info, I investigated.
We visited it with Mom and Dad on Halloween. Hence the table outside getting ready for the Dog Costume Contest. (Oh Park Slope!)
They have a tiny upstairs, called the Great Room. Not ideal for a fancy reception. Better for small ceremonies and cocktail receptions maybe. The outside would be good if we rented a tent. Catering might be tricky. I like the idea of a reception under a tent in Brooklyn in the fall, but it might be more effort than its worth. This is place is still in the running.
Wedding Dress
I strongly dislike shopping. I like getting and wearing new clothes, but the process makes me crazy. Especially when I see price tags or try on things that don’t fit. If I shop, I like to drag Jan (one of my bridesmaids) along because she has a great eye for fashion and bargains, and never spends an inordinate amount of time in any store.
So the idea of wedding dress shopping makes my stomach turn. Especially expensive dresses that are all more or less the same in my mind. I’d rather show up in my PJs.
I knew that Mom’s wedding dress was still in a closet at home. I never tried it on when I was younger for fear that somehow doing so prior to being engaged would jinx all my chances of becoming engaged. I know it’s ridiculous, but that’s how my mind works.
When I got engaged, I asked Mom if I could try it. She was hesitant because apparently during the wine toast at her wedding, Dad managed to spill RED wine down the front of it, leaving a stain that Grandpa and Grandma never had taken out after the wedding. Aunt Sharon insisted they send the dress anyway and maybe I could use some of the fabric for a veil, decorations, etc.
I tried the dress on it and while it looked lovely on my mother in the 1970s, the style and the size are not as well suited to me. However, when Mom was here this last weekend I tried it on again. I wrapped the lacy sleeves behind me and she held the dress at the waist to see if it would look better taken in. I was surprised that it didn’t look half bad. I finally had a picture of me in a wedding dress. Something that I just couldn’t visualize. Perhaps because I prefer PJs and jeans and hiking boots to fancy dresses.
Now I am excited. I have a few things to figure out:
1. Can the stains be removed? A friend of mine said some cleaners have some magical potion that gets old stains out but only temporarily. I must research.
2. If the stains can be removed, how much time and effort will it take to alter the dress?
3. Do I want to wear a polyester blend dress in Brooklyn in September?
I’m secretly hoping the dress transformation can work. Especially if it means I don’t have shop or spend a crazy amount of money. The sentimental reasons are all in place too. I’ll post the results as they come to fruition. Mom assures me that there’s no pressure if the dress can’t be saved. So I won’t be devastated if I HAVE to go shopping in a store, or on eBay, etc. etc.
John Ivy
anjeanette