18 Days...

So how many of you are tired of my countdown? Well, it's almost here and I'm still shaking my head wondering where all the time has gone? It's flying by and yet it seems like it's at a standstill. 

Let's see, I am the first to admit I made mistakes in planning and budgeting. Somehow we ended up with 340 people RSVPing. It seems hard to believe that many people want to come. I think it's crazy. I'm sad that many of the people I really want to come to the wedding cannot come, but I understand why many of you cannot come. 

We nearly doubled our guests and went over budget by a number I am horrified to even admit, but it will be ok. My dress is finished and gorgeous. I have a couple of bridesmaids who still need to have their dresses altered. They ordered them from the David's Bridal store here, which closed over the holidays. I am hoping they find someone to get their dresses altered. It has me a bit worried but not to the point that I'm going to stress out about it. It will be what it will be and they'll figure something out. 

I ordered and paid for our cake. Hopefully it will feed enough people. I ordered Bischochitos and Mexican Wedding Cookies from Chocolate Maven to give away as favors. I might order another couple dozen just in case I need a few more, but as of Friday, we'll have a final tally on guests and that's it... no more people can come. I feel like making a ranting post about RSVPs and how upsetting it is when people don't respond, don't even think twice about bringing a handful of guests and I could go on and on but I won't. 

I picked out the music for the ceremony.  I picked out stuff that is accessible and that my priest/pastor would approve of. Everything is in the missal we use at the parish, and I even think he'd be happy that we're picking Ubi Caritas for Communion. Our vocalist can sing it alone. My childhood friend is playing the piano at the wedding and she's bringing a vocalist she works with to sing. Suzette, the vocalist has a beautiful voice. 

I need to get a list to the photographer of shots we want. We have to pay him by this weekend. We have to pay the band soon. The florist is cool and wants his money the day before the wedding. The flowers are going to be beautiful. I think it's expected that the arrangements we use at church stay there-- so, I'm debating whether to get two more arrangements for the gift table and the guestbook table/place card table. What would you do? Would it be tacky to take the arrangements from church and have someone bring them back early the next morning for 7:30 Mass? Would anyone really do that? That is the question.

Saturday, David and I are being treated out to a night on the town. His best man has arranged his dinner and my maid of honor has arranged mine. i hope this heartburn thing clears up by then, because we're going to The Shed, which is really the only place I like to eat New Mexican Food. I'll eat at a few other places, but never red chile. No one makes red chile like my mom/family does other than The Shed. We have a rehearsal dinner the following weekend, even though the rehearsal isn't until the night before the wedding. We'll give our gifts to the bridal party, make toasts and whatever else happens at a dinner like that. It will be small and intimate. It's actually going to be a potluck at the maid of honor's house. It will be better to do it that night than the night before the wedding. I want everyone to rest that night. I'm not even sure how I'm going to do it, but we want to have a mellow night before.