Our Journey

We have now been engaged for nearly 3 months and it is interesting how your mind starts thinking straight away!

This site is about our journey and I am sure its going to be a big one, its nice at the moment, I am happily and slowly seeing what is out there, finger crossed its all smooth sailing!

Yep, I am now ready to plan this wedding! It took a while. Had to get over everyone asking "When is the wedding? where is it?" - it seems to be the first and the only question that everyone asks you after saying "Congratulations". It was quite overwhelming.
So I  have had some breathing space now, the news has now sunk in and I am able to breathe. Its really nice!

I swore I would not purchase a wedding magazine and I did. Hehe. I have found NZ Weddings to be the best magazine, I like how they put real stories into the magazine, it does not come across as a commercialised publication that is forcing products in your face.

I have hunted for a great weddings website and strangely that was hard to find! Being in New Zealand I can't use the America sites, its just not the same. I have been using www.aucklandweddings.co.nz as a resource but overall I do feel that the industry does not make it easy for Brides to make decisions.

The other site that I have found is a great resource is www.perspectives.co.nz it is a photography website and its great how many of the venues in my mind are on the site, so I can get a feel for what the venues will actually be like.

http://www.perspectives.co.nz/photo/gracehill-autumn-wedding-photos-auckland-wedding-photographers-nick-juliet/

So I hope you enjoy my little adventure. I am a full time work at Fairfax Media, we have a son who is 9, our day starts by leaving the house at 7am and coming home by 5pm, so its hard for us to really get into planning, we really have to make time to look at everything.

Looking forward to the day already!!

Ring is from www.nzjewellers.co.nz

With this beautiful ring on my finger the things I had to first get over were:

• OMG, this ring is too beautiful for me
• OMG, this ring is so pretty
• It shines so much in the sun, wow!
• It makes my hand look so much better then it did before!

Then you HAVE to get a GREAT photo of that ring, now it might take some time, but you'll get there! Below was pretty funny!

Okay so that is now done, and then comes the silly cheesy photos that you feel like you have to get that ring in!

Its still amazing that someone wants this on my finger. 

Review - Mollies Boutique Hotel

Unfortunately this place have not invested much time into their website, their images are repeated throughout the site. Mollies dont give you any information about Wedding packages on the site, so yet again I am happy to email a venue and yet again ill have to download PDF's and store them somewhere! Gets annoying after a while.

In general this place looks like it could be really nice, probably expensive as well.

6 Tweed St, Auckland 1011, New Zealand

I think these guys just need to keep there site up to date and provide some more info about Weddings, this is probably not their main form of income, you can tell.

Emailed for information 12/11/2015

Received an email back the next day:

"Mollies is available as an exclusive wedding venue for up to 55 people for a seated reception, or up to 80 people for a cocktail reception.

 The rate to hire the venue is $15,500.  This includes all ten suites and exclusive use of the hotel for 24 hours. We have a lovely garden/gazebo area purpose built for ceremonies as well.

 Our 3 course set menus start at $145 per person.

Alternatively, we can cater for smaller weddings where you do not have to reserve the hotel exclusively

We have a lovely garden & gazebo ideal for ceremonies, a large luxurious lounge ideal for ceremonies should it be raining. Our private dining room can comfortably seat up to 36 guests.

We charge $5200 for exclusive use of the garden & gazebo, our private dining room for the reception, a Premier suite the day of to get ready, and the Mollies suite for the wedding night."

Very neat how you get the hotel to yourself, unfortunately its just way to much for us, we would end up paying approx $20K not including the dresses etc  

I just don't know enough, it looks very expensive but there is also the option to invite a more intimate group.

OUT FOR NOW, UNTIL PRICING COMES IN

It was here and now its gone! but was great!

November 2015
Wow, what a crazy few days it has been, Mum being the host has probably been the busiest.

Contemplating what food to serve and how and approx how many people will be coming. Sometimes you just have to go with the flow.

Saturday was the day!

On the Tuesday prior my sister moved over from Aussie, so we had a few days to catch up and I took Thursday and Friday off. Thursday was spent shopping, pretty much a whole day shopping which is rare for me! I really hate shopping but I needed a new dress for the special day. Tried on some CRAZY dresses which I didn't mind since my sister was there to give advice on each dress, and then I found the one that I liked! A size 8!! WOAH! that is crazy. A blue halter neck with a bit of draping at the bottom, was really nice.

We got our nails done too. My sister Charlene felt pretty awkward being there since it is not something that she normally does, that made it funny. She brought some clothes as well and some Thin Lizzy!

Friday was full on!! Had breakfast and then off to mums house will as many bits and pieces that we could put in the car. It was a long HOT HOT day walking up and down my stairs to get from A to B.

Photos of the day before:

 

y sister and I and Mum im sure as well were very tired after Friday! I was so tired and those stepsat mums were a huge amount of exercise! I was so tired that even if it rained the next day - in that moment i didn't care, I was just soooo exhausted.

Anju - work friend	Henato and Karina, Anju, Cindy, Mark and Rachel and Master Ethan - work friends
Cindy - work friend	Me and Mum - Lesley
Annette and Murray, Stephens parents	Mum and the Ham
Mum and Cousins Briana, Anna, Leash and sister Charlene	Us
Nana	Us

verall the day was great. Mr Oliver Li who I work with made an awesome video to compliment the day:

ADVICE!! Make sure you remember to record what people gifted to you as you greet! Make sure people are taking photos, you will be sooooo busy throughout your day that you just wont have time. Have thank you cards already at home so that you can get them straight out for those that gifted.

Engagement Party: Some Planning and Ideas

July 2015

I have had a break from planning for family reasons, but now I am back into it. We are wanting to have our Engagement party in  November, which is when we get into the start of Summer (Apparently El Niño will make it warmer faster). Very exciting!!

Because we are wanting to have an small wedding we will be inviting everyone to our engagement party, for example a few work colleagues we will invite the the engagement but we will not be inviting them to the wedding, there is a close relationship but not close enough to invite them to the wedding.

At first we were going to have a lunch Engagement, the main reason we do that is that there will be a few kids and we don't want to encourage too much drinking, we will see how it goes. It would be nice for a night Engagement party, maybe it is just a matter of logistics.
Decision we have made so far are:

1) ENGAGEMENT IS AT MUMS HOUSE!!!! Hehe thanks Mum

Mum has tiered decking so there are 2 levels with decent space plus the lounge and dinning, so we are hoping it is a nice size. In the summer this place will be awesome, it is has a nice view as well.

That is actually the only decision we have made so far ekkkkk, so here is some sites the offer great advice for your engagement:

• www.brides.com
• www.theknot.com (a very common American site I always notice on Google)
• www.realsimple.com

I really like brides.com list, it has a nice layout that is easy to follow, see below a planning step by step


I really want to try out these flowers at the engagement just to see how they go together or even if they do:

I like purple, I like babys breathe and I my fiance brought me some flowers a couple weeks ago and I loved the look of the chrysanthemums. They might not work together, but maybe in other ways.

Love this idea, especially because we have SOOOO many photos

Its really hard to bring everything together and make it work, Pinterest can be the worst yet the greatest at times. I find that I have soooo many ideas but they don't all go together.

Mimosas I saw on Pinterest and it looked like a nice a easy way to start the Engagement, so that will be the first drink for all of our visitors, it will also let them choose if they want alcohol or non alcohol. Ours wont be exactly the same but a yummy starter!

My son helped me to make the MIMOSAS sign!

We are looking at purchasing pre cooked food for the lunch, but the only annoying thing is that someone has to leave the event to go and pick the food up, seems bad. A couple of friends are bring a plate. I hope that I can make some home baking at least!!

Mum Preparing:

1. Decide who's hosting.
Traditionally, the bride's parents host the couple's engagement party. However, like many etiquette rules, this one has changed over the years and these days, pretty much anyone close to the couple is welcome to plan and pay for the engagement party. However, the bride's parents should still get the first chance to throw it. Also, it's perfectly fine to not have an engagement party at all, or to have two — perhaps in the bride's and groom's hometowns. If the groom's parents would like to plan a party as well, they should check with the bride's parents regarding dates, as their celebration should occur after the bride's parents' party.

2. Pick a date.

Engagement parties are usually held soon after the couple becomes engaged, while the news is still fresh. You might even decide to announce your engagement at the party! But many couples decide to share their happy news on social media soon after the proposal happens.

3. Create the guest list.

Anyone invited to an engagement party must also be invited to the wedding, so the party host needs to work with the couple to compile the engagement-party guest list. And if you aren't sure of the size of your wedding just yet, it's better to limit the invites to those you are certain you will also invite to the wedding.

4. Decide on a venue.

Think about the type of party atmosphere you want: If you like the idea of having everyone in the same room, you might want to rent out a private room at a local restaurant. For something more low-key, a family member's house, backyard, or clubhouse might be a better choice.

5. Register for gifts (or not).

Some guests may inquire about a gift registry, so figure out if you want to register or not. If you decide to do so, select items in the low to middle price range (don't forget, the wedding is still to come). If not, include a note in the invitation kindly requesting no gifts.

6. Send the invitations.

Keep the invitations simple — hand-write them yourselves or send the invite via email. If you decide to go the printed-card route, choose a clean, classic design; don't worry about color palettes or other details — your engagement party invitations don't have to match the rest of your wedding stationery.

7. Plan the menu.

There's no need to plan a five-course meal with a four-hour open bar. Anything from passed appetizers to a simple buffet or a casual cookout will work. You can also get creative and serve dishes with special meaning to you.

8. Set the scene.

If you want, choose a theme that reflects you as a couple or something that reflects your two families. The real trick here is that you don't want to upstage the wedding — the point is to celebrate your engagement. If the budget allows, include a few small floral arrangements to perk up the space (it's also a great way to try out a potential florist for the wedding).

9. Decide what to wear.

Choose attire that complements your party setting, but keep it simple. A pretty sundress is great for an outdoor celebration; if your venue is a little fancier, a little white dress is a safe bet. As for your fiancé, while he doesn't have to don a suit and tie (and definitely not a tux!), his outfit should nicely complement yours.