Heidi's One Week Countdown-including planning pictures

[NYJen]

Yeah Heidi!!! So good to hear from you. I haven't checked your blog yet, but I'm going to do it now.

[StephanieMN]

She is here! Share, share, share!!!

[Heidi]

OK... here's my all-in-one planning -

The wedding ceremony site:

(we're either getting the arch pictured or just plain beach!)

The resort (ROR!):


Our room (Jr Suite):


Wedding dinner site:


My dress:


Me in my dress and with veil, with my sister in her MOH dress (though I'm not wearing my hair like that or wearing the veil like that!):


My fabulous bouquet (by Angel's Accents):



BM gifts:

[Heidi]

Guest book (made on Shutterfly):



OOT Bag Goodies -
We got travel mugs made (I wish the pic came out more clearly!) - they're great and I LOVE them!


The whole bag - 1 travel mug per person, 1 frisbee per room, 1 deck of cards, 1 water gun per person, 1 beach ball per room, lei for each woman and gum!


Other odds & ends, no pictures though - sorry!
- We're renting the disco (Pacha Disco) for our reception.
- 4 white parasols from Luna Bazaar for my BMs, and 1 fuschia parasol for me
- My mom designed the BM bouquets (green & pink hydrangeas)
- I have NO IDEA what I'm doing with my hair yet. Going to a BMs house tomorrow in Jersey and we're playing hair ALLLLL day long
- I made 2 hair flowers tonight (cream rose & bright pink something). I'll post pics with hair trials on Sunday.
- Photographer: Robin dePaula. She's going to shoot some BD pics the night before my wedding. You all convinced me!
- TTD Pics: Robin dePaula - we're going to Coyoba River Gardens and getting our trash on in the waterfalls!
- Planned excursions: the whole wedding group is going to Dunns River Falls the AM after the wedding; whoever wants to join us will be doing the Canopy Tour (yay!), and we're probably doing Dolphin Cove (though I have an ethical problem with taking wild dolphins out of their natural habitat...)
- I'm getting bright pink toes and a tropical manicure in bright pink. Very fun!



HOLY CRAP THAT WAS LONG!!! And I have so much more to say too!

[Yari]

Wow, everything looks amazing!!

I am so happy for you.

[Heidi]

Let me know if I missed anything! I'll be on here most of the night, and I'm happy to answer questions about my wedding that's in ONE WEEK!!!

[Heidi]

Duh, I forgot all the ceremony stuff...

VOWS:
Heidi/Reggie, I love you. You are my best friend. Today I give myself to you in marriage. I promise to encourage and inspire you, to laugh with you, and to comfort you in times of sorrow and struggle. I promise to love you in good times and in bad, when life seems easy and when it seems hard, when our love is simple, and when it is an effort. I promise to cherish you, and to always hold you in highest regard. These things I give to you today, and all the days of our life.

EXCHANGE OF RINGS:
I give this ring in token and in pledge of my constant faith and abiding love with all that I am, and all that I will become.

SAND CEREMONY: (we have pink & green sand, woohoo!)
Heidi and Reggie, you have just sealed your relationship
by the giving and receiving of rings and the exchange of a kiss, and this
covenant is a relationship pledge between two people who agree that they
will commit themselves to one another throughout their lives. The most
beautiful example of this partnership is the marriage relationship. You
have committed here today to share the rest of your lives with each other.

Today, this relationship is symbolized through the pouring of two individual
containers of sand one, representing you, Heidi and all that you were,
all that you are, and all that you will ever be, and the other representing
you, Reggie, and all that you were and all that you are, and all that you
will ever be.

As the two containers of sand are poured into the third
container, the individual containers of sand ceased exist, but are joined
together as one. Just as these grains of sand can never be separated and
poured again into the individual containers, so will your marriage be.”

[Heidi]

Readings during the ceremony:

TRADITIONAL IRISH BLESSING
May the road rise to meet you,
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
The rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of his hand.

May God be with you and bless you;
May you see your children's children.
May you be poor in misfortune,
Rich in blessings,
May you know nothing but happiness
From this day forward.

May the road rise to meet you
May the wind be always at your back
May the warm rays of sun fall upon your home
And may the hand of a friend always be near.

May green be the grass you walk on,
May blue be the skies above you,
May pure be the joys that surround you,
May true be the hearts that love you.

Hug O' War”, by Shel Silverstein
I will not play at tug o' war. I'd rather play at hug o' war, where everyone hugs instead of tugs, where everyone giggles, and rolls on the rug, where everyone kisses, and everyone grins, and everyone cuddles, and everyone wins.

And for the rest, we're still deciding which we'll use:

The Best Is Yet To Be, by Joanna Fuchs
On your joyful wedding day,
You begin a brand new life.
Friends and family give their gifts
To joyful husband, blissful wife.

But the greatest gift you'll ever get,
A gift from heaven above,
Is love forever, ending never,
Everlasting love.

You'll share life's joy and pleasure;
You'll have plenty of that, it's true.
But love is the real treasure
For your new spouse and you.

And if life hands you challenges,
As it does to one and all,
Your love will hold you steady
And never let you fall.

Your wedding day is full of joy;
Tomorrow you cannot see.
But one thing's sure for the two of you:
The best is yet to be.

From "The Hungering Dark", by Frederick Buechner
Matrimony is called holy, because this brave and fateful promise of a man and a woman, to love and honor and serve each other through thick and thin, looks beyond itself to more fateful promises still, and speaks mightily of what human life at its most human and most alive and most holy must always be. Every wedding is a dream, and every word that is spoken there means more than it says, and every gesture - the clasping of hands, the giving of rings - is rich with mystery. And so it [is that] we hope with every bride and groom, that the love they bear one another, and the joy they take in one another, may help them grow in love for this whole world where their final joy lies.

The Promise”, by Heather Berry
“Within this blessed union of souls, where two hearts intertwine to become one, there lies a promise. Perfectly born, divinely created, and intimately shared, it is a place where the hope and majesty of beginnings reside. Where all things are made possible by the astounding love shared by two spirits. As you hold each other’s hands in this promise, and eagerly look into the future in each other’s eyes, may your unconditional love and devotion take you to places were you’ve both only dreamed. Where you’ll dwell for a lifetime of happiness, sheltered in the warmth of each other’s arms.

Roads Go Ever Ever On, by J.R.R Tolkien
Roads go ever ever on,
Over rock and under tree,
By caves where never sun has shone,
By streams that never find the sea;
Over snow by winter sown,
And through the merry flowers of June,
Over grass and over stone,
And under mountains in the moon.
Roads go ever ever on
Under cloud and under star,
Yet feet that wandering have gone
Turn at last to home afar.
Eyes that fire and sword have seen
And horror in the halls of stone
Look at last on meadows green
And trees and hills they long have known.

[LadyCheese]

Oh I love everything...I got a lump in the back of my throat reading your vows, etc...

[BarefootBride]

I cant see the pic cause I am at work but I know EVERYTHING is going to be Fabulous! Im so excited for you Heidi! Are you ready?? Did you figure out how you are going to do your hair?