Things To Do on a Saturday Afternoon in Ottawa

For those attending both the morning events and the evening party, there will be a bit of time to kill between the two. We thought we'd come up with a few fun ideas to help keep you occupied:

• go for a walk or lounge along the Rideau Canal, the Ottawa River Parkway or in Andrew Haydon Park (off Carling),
• hit Elgin St. or the Market for a pint or two
• take in a late afternoon performance at the Ottawa Fringe Festival
• break out the suits & the shades & hang at Westboro Beach for a few hours
  
• explore the local shops & cafés in Westboro, Wellington Village and Hintonburg - a few of our favourites: Bridgehead coffee shops (3 locations), Collected Works bookstore, Parkdale Market, Mountain Equipment Co-op & Bushtukah (both outdoorsy stuff), St Vincent de Paul thrift store, Fab Gear 64 & Heavens to Betsy (for the retro dude or diva in you)
• brave the crowds at Ikea, Le Baron or anywhere else for that matter on a Saturday afternoon for a little shopping
• catch some live music at the Ottawa International Jazz Festival,
• catch a late matinée at the Bytowne Cinema (on Rideau St.) or the Mayfair (on Bank), or
  
• go back to your hotel room to chill, sleep & do whatever - we won't ask, we won't judge.
  

Whatever you do, just make sure you keep enough energy to come back and party the night away!

Cake-cutting Party FAQs

What does one wear to a cake-cutting house party? Is it casual? Dressy?
You can wear whatever you want! Some people might feel like spiffing it up a notch for a Saturday night soirée, while others may choose to stay low-key. We'll just be happy to have you here celebrating with us no matter what you're sporting.

Will the bride & groom be wearing their wedding digs?
We will be in our wedding attire for part of the evening. I mean, how often does Dave wear a suit!? And if I'm paying that much for a dress I'm going to wear once I may as well show it off, non? We do however reserve the right to slip into something a little more comfortable as the evening progresses so get there early if you want to see us all dolled up.

It's at 7:30, what kind of food will there be?
It'll be finger foods: probably cold cuts and other canopes, veggies & dip, cheese, bread and bowls of salty treats near the bar. And CAKE! There will be cake! In fact, we'll probably cut into it sometime between 8:30 & 9:00pm so make sure you're there if you want a piece. We make no promises on the availability of cake later in the evening.

Should I bring my own booze (BMOB)?
We'll have beer and wine (red & white), soft drinks, plenty of water and maybe even some punch. If you want hard stuff or a specific brand of beer we suggest that you bring your own.

Do we really have to dance?
Well we obviously won't force you, but don't underestimate a tipsy Stephanie's convincing gaze (read: glare). If she wants you on the dance floor, she usually has a way of making it happen. Oh, and don't forget to submit your favourite dance tunes for the playlist!

TTFN...

~ the Bride

A Place to Stay

Can someone tell us where the past three weeks went?!?

Breathe.

'K.

So some of you might be coming in from out of town for the night. Although there are no special "Steph & Dave" rooms or wings booked at any of these hotels, we wanted to list a few options if you're looking for a place to stay. The first three are close to the wedding hoopla, while the others are located downtown - still only about a 10-minute drive or cab ride away.

Close to wedding hoopla:

• Best Western Macies Right off the 417, a 10-minute drive to downtown Ottawa, about a 5-minute cab ride from our place, CAA 3 diamond rating
  
• Travelodge Ottawa Hotel and Conference Centre Pretty much next door to the Best Western Macies, CAA 3 diamond rating
  
• Embassy West Hotel Conference Centre Pretty much next door to the Travelodge, didn't see a CAA rating, according to their Web site they're in the midst of renovations and some services aren't available so they're offering special rates - you might be able to get a decent deal if you just want a place to crash!

And if you're looking for a more urban experience, there are of course some swankier hotels downtown:

• Delta Ottawa
• ARC The. Hotel (boutique hotel, think hip & swanky, sleek lines & red velvet)
• Minto Suite Hotel
• Lord Elgin Hotel

See y'all soon!

Getting Closer, Things are Happening

Things have been busy in the Steph & Dave household these past several weeks with lots of wedding and non-wedding stuff going on. I thought I’d give you an update on the preparations…

~ We met our officiant for the first time on Saturday, he seems like a nice guy. Our ceremony is through All Seasons Weddings. Aside from the few mandatory sentences we need to say to make sure we’re legally married, we pretty much have carte blanche on the ceremony. We get to choose whatever gives it meaning for us. I like that.

~ We picked up our wedding license so we’ll be legal in the eyes of Ontario. Dave had a bit of a freak-out moment when he signed it, but I think he worked through it alright. I’m certainly not one to judge, panic attack anyone?

~ We booked a favourite local jazz musician and his trio to play for the ceremony (and the luncheon if it’s nice out). It’s our big, giddy, irrational splurge. He also conducts Ottawa’s Impressions in Jazz Orchestra, check ‘em out if you get a chance. Dave and I love what they do.

~ My wedding band’s been ordered. We found a company that makes reproductions of retro/vintage rings and they had a near perfect match to the 1950s engagement ring Dave gave me (his grandmother’s). We’re still waiting for Dave to decide on his band (ahem… poke).

~ Our engagement photo shoot is set for the May 23^rd weekend. The photographer is a friend of mine and I look forward to working with her. I’m usually a pretty awkward subject though and feel a little bad; I really hope I don’t end up looking like Chandler.

~ The RSVPs are coming in and I love it! I love seeing what songs people are submitting for the playlist (for those who actually submitted songs and didn’t pass the buck – you know who you are). I’m also frankly a bit surprised to see so many slow songs! I guess weddings make people want to snuggle up & schmaltz it up a little. :)

~ Wedding attire: the dress is picked up & stored at my sister's; Dave has his first fitting for his suit this weekend.

~ We started planning the evening party (woohoo!), creative folk and party planner extraordinaire were recruited to help. It should be a good time! Let’s pray for good weather ‘k?

I think that’s about it for now. It’s pretty wild & fun & a little bit crazy, but it’s all good.

TTFN…

~ the Bride

Our Wedding: A Primer

Date: June 27th, 2009

Format: private morning ceremony & luncheon followed by an open evening reception/cake-cutting party at our place

Venue: garden ceremony, luncheon in a haunted 1800s Georgian style manor transformed into a Keg restaurant; evening party at our home

Ceremony: most likely a tailored handfasting ceremony that includes a traditional exchange of rings

Music: a mixture, anything from Benny Goodman to Sean Paul to the Sex Pistols - don't forget to send us your favourite dance tunes for the party playlist!

Theme: vintage/old Hollywood; it wasn't really planned, it sort of organically came together from a shared love of jazz, vintage flair & classic movies

Traditions: another mixture, Dave's a traditionalist and Steph spent a lot of time surfing sites like Offbeat Bride and A Practical Wedding, so don't be surprised if some of the usual wedding traditions are skipped altogether and others are there, but with a twist

Priorities: vows, meaning, good food, good drink, and celebration with friends & family!

The Invites Are Out!

If you are reading this site, then the above should look familiar to you, as by now, you will have already got one of these in the mail.

The invitations were a tag team effort: Stephanie with the wording, hand addressing (my penmanship is not that neat! ;-) and design tweaking; and myself with the graphic design, layout and printing (oh the printing!). We both picked out the colours for the papery.

Initially we tossed around a few ideas for the wedding, but as we have a relatively short engagement, our options were limited. Eventually a theme just kinda organically developed as we began to make some choices in venue, etc. In the end we went with a retro, "elegant simplicity" theme for the invitations. The fonts used are vintage 1920's and 1930's fonts, and the graphic was of a 1920's bride. The colours: the tan parchment, black text and the most commented thing, the black envelope, are very monochrome, elegant and evocative of a simpler time.

In a way it is fitting, as Stephanie and my first date was dinner and the watching of the 1950 black and white movie, Harvey. Yes we are both old movie buffs and yes there is a blasphemous colour version of Harvey, though Steph rightly held out to rent the superior black and white version! It's little things like that that helped me decide to marry her! ;-)

--The Groom

Bienvenidos!

Hi and Welcome!

We’re not sure exactly how this wedding blog will take shape, but with Dave being a techie geek and Steph being a word nerd, it was simply a matter of time before we launched something online. Plus it is the 2000s so we're tryin' to keep with the times.

Over the next few months we thought we'd...

• offer you tidbits about each other that the new in-laws might not know (Dave's family & friends, meet Steph; Steph's family & friends, meet Dave),
• post maps to the wedding venues, hotels & local attractions,
• introduce you to the cast & crew involved in the wedding (assuming they're willing to be exposed here!),
• answer any FAQs,
• show off our engagement photos, and
• indulge in any other fun stuff that tickles our fancy.
  

We’ll keep the dirty laundry and some surprises to ourselves though. It’d be boring if you knew EVERYTHING about the wedding beforehand wouldn’t it?

Hope you’ll join us for the ride.

Steph & Dave