Cake Testing...

We went cake testing to two difference bakeries. We had two very different experiences. The first bakery had great cake but we took the cake home and to choose the decorations will work with the catering lady at the hotel. The second place was more what you think about when you think cake taste testing. We walked into a small conference room with a variety of sample cakes placed around the room. The lady assigned to us walked us through pictures as we picked and talked about how we would like the cake to look. Then brought out two plates. WOW! this is cake tasting. yum!

The first three rows are mousses for the middle of the cakes, then comes three jams and two custards, finally followed by the fruit/butter cream choices, white butter cream, chocolate butter cream, mocha butter cream, hazelnut butter cream, cream cheese butter cream, and lemon butter cream.

From the top of the plate is banana cake, devils food cake, chocolate chiffon. Directly below that is vanilla chiffon, yellow cake, and almond pound cake. The last row is carrot cake without raisins and red velvet.

We had a great time taking a little cake and a little bit of various middles. Oh the options we came up with were amazing. Steve's favorite was carrot cake with cream cheese butter cream. My favorite was a toss up between banana cake with white butter cream and devils food with raspberry jam and mocha butter cream. So we went with devils food and strawberry butter cream. :)

weather outlook

Past Weather for November 13
Here's a look at past weather in your area for the past three years.
Year Weather Hi/Lo (°F) Rain (in.) Details:

2009 Cloudy - Cloudy 56/39 - 0.00
2008 Cloudy/Wind - Cloudy/Wind 54/44 - 0.10
2007 Mostly Cloudy - Mostly Cloudy 60/37 - 0.00

16 days...

Things are really coming together well. It's great. I don't think I'm forgetting something but I feel like there should be something I'm forgetting so then I get a bit worried.
Table setting is the next big thing. There's needs to be 10 people per table, maybe a few with 8 plus a spot for the DJ and photographer.
I tried on my dress last week. It's a big snug... OK it's a bit tight. I guess I don't need to breath on my wedding day. ;) A wonderful neighbor is helping with the bustle. I'm still deciding about nylons or not. Still thinking about earrings. Discussed emergency kit and snacks with Mrs. Frisk last night. I also let her in on the "get away" secret. It's slowly not so much a secret because we've told a few people and it's becoming more and more but we can't do it without help. I'm so excited about it.
Steve and I met with the Priest on Tuesday. I think it will be a challenge to keep the service short and on schedule. We didn't leave a lot of breathing room for the wedding party with pictures after the service and getting to appetizers. We'll have some snacks at the church if people get hungry. No one will pass out from hunger. Always a good thing. :)
Rehearsal dinner is done. Sunday morning brunch sounds like it's coming together. Honeymoon plan is ready to spring into action. Whee! We've also gotten a few wedding presents already and have opened and enjoyed a few of them. *sigh* it's so much fun. Like Christmas coming early.
:) side note - only 58 days until Christmas... 16 days for Steve and me.

30 days...

Yesterday was one month. How fitting that I had my hairstyle tested. It was fun. I was warned that this was a "quick" test and the stylist only put "light" hairspray in my hair. you get the idea.
:)
I like the curls.

44 days

44 days
44 days
44 days

holy cow! what a week.
It started last week on Monday when everything I touched fell apart. Steve's computer died - at my hand, well not really but i turned it on to discover it was on it's last leg. My load of laundry was off balanced, the first time I've done that in Steve's washer. It didn't help that once i got the load finished I put it in the dryer and forgot to turn on the dryer. It kind of went downhill from there. Tuesday was slightly better. Wednesday (the day we were leaving for Stormy Lake) I tried to print some nice labels for the invitations. First I battled my parent's computer to finally win and get the addresses all ready on to print them. The printing begins and we discovered i bought the wrong labels. Then I couldn't find the right labels. After coming back from a long weekend at Stormy Lake, Steve and I sat down to stuff the invitation to discover we were 20 invitations short. We have the right number of envelopes and response cards but not invitations. Groan! First thing Tuesday morning I was trying to contact the company. They are not on early starting company. By 11:00 everything was resolved and apologized for with a promise that the 20 short invitations will be in the mail Wednesday. whew! This morning I was watching the news and saw a short clip about an increase in stamp prices. They said the announcement will be tomorrow but nothing about when the increase would take effect. Groan! Fortunately Ann-Marie did some quick Internet searching and we believe the new price goes into effect Jan. 2, 2011. whew! This is more stress than I want.
On another note we met with Paula, North Park's wedding coordinator, on Tuesday. She was full of helpful knowledge. I think Steve walked out rather overwhelmed. There were several small details he didn't even think about and they were swimming through his head. I did make a decision on the flowers and decorations for the church. Simple flowers and candles. I think the church will glow. Tuesday I also managed to fine the right labels for the right computer and got the labels printed.

Did I mention in the middle of the week last week I started thinking I should pick up yoga?

weather

According to Weather.com here's what the day could look like...

My Wedding

Location:	Chicago, IL (60625)
Date:	November 13, 2010 (61 days to go!)
Time:	4:30 PM
Sunset:	4:31 PM
Moon Phase:	First Quarter Typical Weather for November 13 Here are average weather conditions for the day of your wedding: Average High Temp:50°F Record High Temp:66°F (2007) Average Low Temp: 33°F Record Low Temp: 6°F (1986)

64 days...

wow! time is really flying by. Next week is a really busy week.

Monday meeting with Pastor Judy.
Tuesday meeting with Paula the wedding coordinator.
Wednesday taste testing at the reception hall.
Thursday meeting with Sharon the wonderful organist.
Friday - SLEEP!
Saturday cake testing in the morning and 4 year old birthday party in the afternoon. OK that's not wedding related but it's adding to the busyness of the week.

I'm still working on flowers. I have a couple of fun ideas for the decorations in the church. Simple but hopefully striking. Boutonnieres and corsages should be decided today or next week. Jewelry is in the works by two talented people. whee!

88 Miles An Hour...

88 days until the wedding.

So much is going on and yet so we are waiting for so much. Waiting for invitations. Collecting addresses. Next Monday we have an appointment with our Photographer. so excited. hopefully he will be just what we want. Mid-September bring our food tasting at the North Shore Holiday Inn on Touhy. Yeah! time to eat. Next week, we'll schedule our cake tasting too. YUM! this is definitely the best part. I guess that also means putting in extra time at the gym.

Other than thinking about food, I have flowers on my mind. Not only for the bouquets but also the boutonnieres, church, and the tables for the reception. The nice things about the reception is the flowers are included. I just have to tell them what I want. I talked last week with the lady at the Holiday Inn. She gave me an idea about centerpieces, colors, candles, vases. So many decisions. Here are a few of my inspirations: