Thank you! (No, we haven't forgotten...)

Hi all, Chuck and I want to say thank you again for coming to the wedding to celebrate with us. Also, we wanted to let you know that we do intend to send out thank you cards...eventually. We are getting photo cards through our photographer, but unfortunately she has had some family and health issues, and it doesn't look like we'll be getting them until sometime in the new year. We do appreciate all the wonderful gifts we received, and look forward to formally thanking you all when we can. For now, all I can do is send this out into the world.

Engagement photos

There's a story behind these, ask me next time I see you in person and I'll explain. http://melissawelshphotography.smugmug.com/Portraits/Hilary-Chuck

Maps

Click here to see a Google map of some of the relevant locations.


View Wedding locations in a larger map
Once you're inside the Castle grounds you will hopefully be able to find your way around, but here's a hastily personalized
map anyways.

Putting the Party in Bridal Party

I'd like to take this post to introduce the members of our awesome wedding party.

On Chuck's side will be his friend Tim, travelling all the way from Madison, Wisconsin with his wife Beth to celebrate with us. Chuck and Tim met in university in Mankato.

Chuck, Hilary, Beth and Tim in London 2012

Up next is Chuck's cousin Paul. I assume they met in Port McNeill when they were little. Paul and his wife Sarah will be coming from Edmonton.

Paul, Chuck and Sarah in Cobble Hill 2010

 

 

Rounding out Chuck's side and starting on mine are Will and Robyn. I went to high school with both of them, but we weren't in the same grade and weren't all that close. We met up again in Vancouver and the rest is history!

Hilary, Robyn and Will at Parallel 49 Brewing in Vancouver 2013

Last but not least I have my lovely sister Heather. She is a little over 8 months pregnant and has been a trooper through all the wedding planning and festivities. Can't wait to meet the little one (hopefully not *at* the wedding though.) Heather's husband Matt will be corralling their daughters Gwen and Zinnia at the ceremony. Watch for the little yellow blurs. :)

Daniel, Heather and Hilary in Victoria 2012

2 weeks!

Wow, 2 weeks from being married. It really snuck up on me.

I know some people have been looking for more details, and I wish I had them too. Here's a rough idea for now.

Noon - ceremony at Hatley Castle

3 pm - open house at my parents' place (not posting the address here for obvious reasons)

5:30 pm - reception at Swan's. Dinner around 6.

7 pm - dance the night away! I want to dance with everyone at least once.

Sorry that this post lacks pictures and concrete info. More soon, I promise.

Etiquette?

I recently read this story of a couple who was not pleased with the gift they received from a pair of guests at their wedding. I can't believe anyone would be so rude as to complain about a GIFT.

I hope that all of our guests know that we will be happy to have you at the wedding, and that your presence  is gift enough. If you are inclined to want to do more, see this post or this post for info on our registries.

Short post because we just got home from a fishing trip in Wisconsin and I'm still tired. Who would've thought sitting in a boat for hours on end could be so exhausting.

Reception details

So, you'd like some information on the reception would you? Well you've come to the right place...sort of. It will be in the Marquee Room at Swans Hotel.

There will be dinner, dancing and delicious beer. If you're not familiar with Swans it is a hotel/restaurant/brew pub in downtown Victoria. They brew all their own beer, so don't try to order anything "macro." The Marquee Room is licensed as a nightclub, so as mentioned previously, nobody under 19 will be allowed. There are also stairs, but hopefully you'll only have to go up and down them once. :)

If you need a hotel for the night and haven't booked one yet, get on it! Here is a Google map showing what's nearby. Alternately, you can contact Ryan Phillips at ryan.phillips@flightcentre.ca or phone (604) 374-2200.

We haven't finalized times yet, but we're aiming for around a 6 pm start for the reception. Stay tuned!

HBC = Hudson's Bay Company

Well, we finally got around to adding some things to our HBC registry. Their site is not exactly the most user friendly I've ever encountered, but if you want to check it out you can find the main registry site here, and search by either of our names, or enter the registry number 400111013836. (Like I said, not very user friendly.) It also features a frightening countdown, which as of the writing of the post tells me I only have 68 days left. Eep! We'll probably add more items as the next few weeks go by. Now here's a picture of a teapot. :)

I'm a little teapot...

If you have any questions (like "What's with the teapot? Are you kidding with some of the things on your registry? Do you think anyone is actually reading this?) feel free to ask in the comments. :)

Two Engagement photo shoots?!

Yes, we (ok I) won engagement photo shoots with two different photographers! Lisa Rivers, who will be doing our wedding photos as well, and Melissa Welsh, who is a friend of a friend and had a Facebook contest.

We've had our shoot with Melissa and the photos should be up soon. Our shoot with Lisa is scheduled for May 5th. Check back!

This is Chuck on the day of the first photoshoot. This is also why I leave it to the professionals (usually.)

Procrastination

Things I should be doing: planning a wedding I guess?

Things I am doing: watching Youtube videos. Writing this silly post.

This is our song if anyone is curious. :)

Times Like These (acoustic) by the Foo Fighters

And because this post lacks pictures, and it is almost St Patrick's Day, here's one of us from St Patrick's Day 5 years ago. Time flies!

Everybody vacations in different ways

I thought planning a wedding was stressful. Then I tried to plan a honeymoon.

Chuck and I have very different vacation styles. He wants to do and see everything available to him in a given place. I want to lay on a beach and relax.

Chuck's initial thought was Ireland. While it is definitely on my list of places to see, it didn't seem very 'honeymoon-y' to me. I countered with Jamaica, but Chuck thought there wouldn't be enough to see. (Don't ask him what he wants to see exactly, he'll just tell you 'stuff.')

After much back and forth about what a honeymoon should be, we've landed on a couple nights in Rome, and then 7 nights at an all-inclusive resort on the island of Crete, Greece.

Which means Chuck gets to see this:

And I get to do this:

Everybody wins.

If you're interested in helping out with this dream honeymoon, we've registered with Flight Centre. Just visit our Flight Centre registry page here.

Winning!

Flowers by Platinum Floral, photo by Kristopher James

Those who know me, know I love to win. Want to know the secret to winning? Entering. A lot. I've entered many wedding related contests since we got engaged, and have been fortunate enough to win a few already. Big thanks to these people/companies for the prizes below:

http://www.westshoreweddingshow.com/
A free ticket to the Westshore Wedding show!

Blue Lily Events
A spring photo shoot with Lisa Rivers Photography (Engagement session?)

Platinum Floral Designs
$500 worth of custom floral design!

Photo by Lisa Rivers

Photo by Lisa Rivers

Flowers by Platinum Floral, photo by Nichole Taylor

Flowers by Platinum Floral, photo by Nichole Taylor

Location, location, location

Castle Entrance

Our wedding ceremony will be held in the croquet garden of the beautiful Hatley Castle in Victoria, BC. I've loved this place since I was little. My Dad worked at Royal Roads and we spent lots of time on the grounds or attending Christmas parties inside.

View from the croquet garden