Drum Roll Please....

And now, without further ado, I shall announce to you the reception hall that has been chosen. If anyone is confused about what I am referring to, please read my previous blog. 

Hall 2 is the winner! We all (my Mom, Dad, future Mother-in-Law and I) arrived to the Hall 2 this afternoon and happened to be one of the first guests to arrive at the bridal show. My Dad asked immediately if the hall had been reserved for October 24. A young woman looked at their calendar and on the date the words "Reserved" had been written. She asked him to wait as she double-checked with the men who handled the hall reseravations. A man joined us and informed us that the date was reserved under the name of "Stang". Now, I called Hall 2 several weeks ago inquiring about the availability of the hall. The gentleman I spoke with had asked me for my name. At that time I was not sure why, but, obviously, a miscommunication happened. As soon as I heard "Stang", I knew that they had simply spelled my name wrong when they had written down that I was interested in reserving the hall.

So,  I had reserved the hall and was not even aware of it. That was the first bonus at the bridal extravaganza. The second one was the special discount that they were offering that day. If you placed your deposit on the hall that afternoon, you would receive one hundred dollars off! Fantastic! Also, the soda bar price was half-off! Excellent! Saving money all around! That is what I call a good day.

Without hesitation, we placed a deposit on the hall. Although this would seem to everyone to be a joyous thing considering a decision had finally been made, it was a bittersweet event. Remember, we had booked Hall 1 already. Now that Hall 2 was booked we needed to tell Hall 1 that we were no longer holding our party there. Hall 1 had a table set up at the bridal show that afternoon. My Mom sauntered over the table with future Mom-in-Law and I in tow (Mom needed moral support). She explained to the two girls at the Hall 1 table our situation. Thankfully, the ladies were totally understanding and said that there should be no problem with cancelling the date at Hall 1. Phew! No angry words or nasty faces as I had expected. Ok, so I have an overactive imagination...so what?

Now that we had discussed the issue with Hall 1, my Dad was volunteered to find our caterer (who is, ironically, directly connected with Hall 1) and explain to him that we still want their services for the day! Did I mention how fun it was to plan a wedding? My dad found Mr. Caterer and again told our epic story. He, too, was perfectly fine with our cancelling the hall and even told us that the down payment we had placed on Hall 1 could be used to pay for the catering services that day! Oh, HAPPY DAYS!

All in all, I am very happy about Hall 2 being our reception site. God was gracious and blessed me and my family in so many ways today. My Mommy can be at ease now and I will be happy knowing that she will be comfortable on my wedding day. She was never being a monster about the situation, she just wanted me to have the best place possible for my special day. And to tell the truth, I am happier with Hall 2 than I am with Hall 1. Little things makes it ideal. For example, Hall 2 is on a hill. I have always wanted to be married on a hill and this kind of compensates that dream. Also, I will not have to decorate as much to make the place look nice. It is already beautiful, no help is needed. So, I would like to thank my Mommy and God for helping me pick the perfect place for my wedding day. I love them both very much and always will!

This or That

I have yet to see the fun part of wedding planning. Planning my wedding is not nearly as fun as I had hoped it would be. All of the choices that need to be made are numerous and difficult.

So far, the biggest battle of planning wedding day has been picking out a recption hall. We do, in fact, have a place booked (it shall be dubbed Hall 1), but my poor Mommy is not happy with it. She believes that the place is too dirty and the floors are too old. She is worried that our guests will feel uncomfortable because she is. Now, as for the bride , I love the place. There are quite a few windows and the room is arranged in such a way that everyone can see the dance floor; two very important things to me. My Mom does not think, however, that these things are important in the grand scheme of things. It is going to be October after all, and the windows really will not make much of a difference. Eh, what do I know?

Now, the place my Mom likes,which from now on shall be called Hall 2, we saw several months ago. The only thing that is stopping me from truly falling in love with the place is the memory of my fiancee's reaction when he saw. Now I know his sour and unconvinced face was caused by the advertised prices of the caterers (which, consequentally, has been resolved and is no longer an issue). While, I know deep in my heart that Dominick was only concerned with the price of the caterers, that unhappy face still sticks in my mind when I think of Hall 2. 

Now, do not mistake me, it is a gorgeous hall. They just remodeled the place and put lots of money into it. But, it is almost too fancy for me. I am a plain person. Ornamented things make me feel awkward and uncomfortable. Also, there are no windows and the dance floor is practically a separate room. One cannot see the dancers from the oppostie ends of the main area of the hall. Now, my concerns are not a big deal or even legitimate, but I cannot help it. 

After many discussions with Mom and long, tedious bouts of contemplation, I have decided that I really do not mind where we have our reception. I have almost made up my mind that having atreception at Hall 2 is the wiser choice. However, because of other circumstancecs, which I will not detail here, my Mother does not wish to book Hall 2 until this Sunday at a bridal show. I am prone to stress easily and the fact that we cannot book Hall 2 is causing my stress-level to go up. I called Hall 2 a few weeks ago and they informed me that our date, October 24, is still open, BUT by the time we make a decision I am so afraid that the hall is going to be booked. And then I will suffer a long duration of regret and sadness. But do not fear, I know that God is going to take care of this day and no matter where we have it, Hall 1 or Hall 2, I know it will be a day that I will always look back on with fond memories.

This small tale has a word of wisdom for all future brides out there in blog-world: do not rush into making major decisions for wedding day. We booked Hall 1 on a whim. I liked the place and that was it. I did not take the time to seriously, calmly and rationally talk with my Mom about the pros and CONS . Becuase of that, my poor parents have put a down payment on a place we may not have our reception at. The feeling I am left with is guilt. I know my parents do not mind and all they want is to prepare a wedding day that will make everyone happy and comfortable, but it still bothers me. So, please, take the time to discuss major decisions with a couple people instead of making them on your own. 

I will report which hall has been definitely picked in the near future. In the mean time, do not worry yourselves with the decision I am facing (wink, wink). Hall 1 or Hall 2? Hall 1 or Hall 2? Excuse me as I go beat my head against a wall.