I Can Change My Mind, Right?

Why Can't I Decide?

One thing that I've learned during the last four months of wedding planning is that I am pretty darn indecisive. It's really difficult for me to discern whether I'm making a decision because it's something that I really want or whether I'm making the decision because it's something I think someone else really wants.

I've talked to my future husband (FH) about this and he's been trying really hard to help me figure out what I want for our wedding. However, even after long conversations with him (where we discuss the pros and cons of all the choices floating around my head) and I think I figure out what I want, it's not long before I change my mind again.

For example, we've chosen to have our wedding at Oxon Hill Manor in Maryland. Problem is that I've always imagined my wedding ceremony taking place in a church (one in particular), not outdoors. I know what you're thing... Why did we book Oxon Hill Manor if we wanted to get married in a church?

Well, I cried when I saw the bridal suite at Oxon Hill Manor. When my FH and me went there for a bridal show, we fell in love with it, and we thought it was the perfect location (more about our first visit here).

I'm not saying I don't like the place anymore, because I love it. It's just that I've been thinking a lot about how I originally wanted to get married in a church.

Another reason I've been thinking about a church wedding is because it would be less expensive. Oxon Hill Manor is not by any means an inexpensive venue and it's a big place, meant for big weddings. We've been talking about cutting costs, shortening the guest list, and I wonder if we shouldn't revert back to our original plan, which was to get married at Cherrydale Baptist Church and have the reception at the Hendry House (more about this venue here).

My FH is going to have a bit of a hissy, because we already "decided," this, but what if I've changed my mind? I'm finding this to be one of the hardest things about planning a wedding. Decisions are final. My FH's mom suggested we don't second guess any decisions we've made, but can't I just change this one thing? It'd be cheaper and ... well, I wonder if I'll be sad we didn't go with Oxon Hill.

Again I Ask, Why Can't I Decide?

Have you changed your mind about important wedding-related decisions (and then changed your mind again)? Do you have a difficult time deciding on something like the dress, the venue, or the guest list?

Pic One Source
Pic Two and Three By Me

Yes, I am a Vender Stalker...

I came across this post on Weddingbee and realized that it has been a while since I cyber-stalked my venues. I am a mad-lady at stalking my photographer and band, but its been a while since I have googled, "Glen Echo Park" and"wedding." I found the greatest photos of recent weddings on-line last night that I thought I would share with you all. Looking at them just makes me fall in love with our venues all over again. (All three above taken by Michelle Lindsey Photography)

The couple below also used our ceremony venue. I am so in awe and envy of the decor and professional design of this wedding. THIS is how you do the Bumper Car Pavilion.

(Photos taken by Kristen Leigh)

Although we will not be using the carousel, I love it dearly...I am so sad that it will be closed for our wedding.

(Blink Photography)

No matter what, however, I am just happy to have found this place. I mean, come on, who could resist pictures like this...

(Documentary Associates)

So, what about you guys? Vendor or venue stalking?

Our Venue

Mr. UVA and I started our search in the DC area. The initial idea was actually Union Station. Last summer, Mr. UVA and I were enjoying National Train Day and a free Sara Bareilles show and realized how beautiful the station is. Both of our families live in Northern Virginia and we were stoked about the possibility of having the reception downtown with a rehearsal dinner at my parent’s house. Union Station quickly fell from the realm of possibilities when we looked at pricing. So we expanded our search. We looked at the DAR building, Woodend Sanctuary, Woodlawn, Meadowlark, the Carnegie Institute, and a couple other places.
Being from Vienna, Meadowlark Gardens is a hugely popular venue – but it just didn’t fit the feel we were looking for. Carnegie Institute didn’t work for us logistically with having the ceremony and reception near each other. My father can’t get over his distaste for Maryland (who knows?)– so Woodend was out. And a reception at Woodlawn would be hindered by construction on the main road in front of the venue. DAR was perfect and I was set on it – but quickly realized we were not going to be able to get our guest list down to 140 (their limit). We found Oatlands Plantation in Leesburg – which is beautiful. Before even looking at it seriously as an option, we realized it would be a little bit of a hike for our families and maybe wasn’t the most convenient location in terms of hotels and transportation. The logic was if we were getting as far away from Vienna as Leesburg – why not make the full transition to Charlottesville? We would just steer clear of vineyards so not to step on my older sister’s toes (she got married at King Family Vineyards in June 2008 - It was beautiful). So we found Clifton Inn. I had heard awesome things about it and it seemed to allow for the full family reunion feel my mom was hoping for.

Clifton is perfect! We have free rein of the property from Friday afternoon through Sunday afternoon so our family and friends can come and hang out throughout the weekend. They have a pool, a lake, tennis courts, hiking trails, games, fishing poles, and it’s beautiful. We fell in love with it – but not so much the price. I knew it was what we were looking for, so I started negotiating. We ended up getting an awesome deal on the rental fee and the food (which they prepare onsite to rave reviews). Everything started to fall into place. Clifton provides the food and cake, which helps our planning immensely. We’re having our ceremony outside on their croquet lawn and then the reception in the main house.

{from cliftoninn.net}

Even though we signed the contract in February, we just took Mr. UVA’s mom to see it and she loved it. My parents just saw it for the first time this past weekend and I think everyone is really going to enjoy relaxing at the beautiful estate and being able to invite their families for some casual fun before the formal wedding festivities.

Our venue is not new to DCNearlyWeds. Check out:
Miss Capital Hill 2007



Speaking of beautiful venues - is anyone getting married in Louisiana? I saw this place on "Ace of Cakes" on TLC. The trees hurt my heart they are so awesome! Seriously stunning.


<3 miss uva

I LOVE my venue!

Mr. NationalHarbor and I are getting married at the Oxon Hill Manor in Oxon Hill, Maryland. We are getting married on Halloween and I was trying to find a venue that had the right feel. A giant hotel downtown could have worked I suppose but this one just felt right from the second we drove onto the grounds.

Our wedding planner suggested this location the very first time I met her. We were having cocktails and trading ideas and when I told her I was getting married on Halloween she exclaimed: Oh you should see if you can get the Oxon Hill Manor! I immediately went home to check out the place on the Internet and it looked perfect. I took off of work the next day, grabbed my fiance' and my parents and headed out to view the building and grounds.

I know I am biased but I think it has everything you need if you are having a smaller reception. It can hold up to 170, I believe. The Manor has its own brides' room upstairs where you can get ready, a drawing room, a library, a dining room, a beautiful long driveway, a spacious outdoor area in the back with fantastic views of the city and grounds, a pool with fountains and a mini garden on the side where lots of brides like to have their pictures taken I am told. Sadly, because of the time when I am getting married I won't be able to use the grounds for pictures though. They also have a number of chairs and tables in storage which you can use if you like which is included in the fee.

And speaking of fees-- that is the best part- the Manor is only $3,300 if you are a PG county resident and $4,500 I believe, if you are not. You don't even have to be the resident. My parents live in PG county but I do not. The administrator said as long as they sign the main paperwork that is fine and we could still get the discount! As I was writing the check for the deposit-which is only $750 by the way- a bride called checking on availability for October of 2011! The administrator shook her head and said that the phone rings off the hook all day with brides checking on dates. Apparently word has gotten out about the place. She said they do not start taking reservations for the coming year until they get back on January 3rd from Christmas break. She said that last year 3 couples had actually camped out the night before and were waiting for her when she arrived to open the door at 8 a.m. so they could ensure that they could get their date of choice. She then excused herself from the room. When she returned the phone rang again and incredibly it was a bride asking about an afternoon wedding on the exact same day as me!!! I had gotten my choice by the skin of my teeth!

I made sure I handed my deposit check over quick-- let me tell you!

The place really is great and I can only think of 3 drawbacks. 1) No red wine or red flowers. Oxon Hill Manor is owned by the Maryland Parks Service and since it has been recently refurbished with all new hardwood floors they will not allow anything red. 2) You cannot get on the grounds until 2 hours before your ceremony starts. For some-- this may be a problem and 3) you cannot actually cook on the grounds. They had a bad fire a few years ago and I am not sure if that had anything to do with their decision but they only have a warming kitchen now. My caterer said that was not a problem and that there are a lot of places that have that restriction though.

So if anyone is looking for a place which has some charm and are on a small to medium sized budget I highly recommend Oxon Hill Manor!

The search for the perfect venue....

Mr. Rockville and I are on a limited budget. Especially for the insanely expensive D.C area. We're trying to keep the total cost of wedding expenses (not including the honeymoon) under $15,000. Not that this isn't alot of money, but anyone living in D.C knows how difficult it is to hold a decent wedding for that price.

It's been a struggle to find a reception site that fits within our budget and vision for the wedding. I do not want a hotel ballroom or any "cookie cutter" wedding venue. I've spent countless hours online searching and studying various sites, and everything that I adore is just way out of our budget. That being said, we've visited two sites so far, and hope to visit more soon.

Our first site we visited was the Rockville Rooftop. This is a gorgeous open-air rooftop in the center of Rockville's new Town Square. We liked this place because it's literally 5 minutes from our house, but also because it has a beautiful, modern space for the reception.

The downside.... after rental fees for the rooftop and the downstairs space (in case of rain), tables, chairs, and set up fees it came out to about $6,000 to rent the space. Sorry, not happening. We absolutely love it though and would reccomend it to anyone who has the budget for it! http://www.rockvillerooftop.com/

Today we visited a site in Laurel called Snow Hill Manor. The Manor is owned and operated by the PG Parks and Recreation Department and I was very surprised by how much I loved it! During the summer months it comes with a tented patio, tables, chairs, ceremony site and use of the house (including and bride AND groom suite) for only $1,300! Definitely much more within our budget. They don't accept reservations for next year until September, so I still have more time to look. (All images courtesy of Beck and Call Photography...I forgot to bring my camera!)

http://www.pgparks.com/places/eleganthistoric/snowhill_intro.html

We still have a long way to go until we buckle down and choose a place...but this is a good start!

Potpourri of Planning!

Three things.

First, I'll start with the most exciting! We booked our hotel for the honeymoon in New York City! We'll be staying four days and three nights at the Park 79 hotel in the Upper West Side; next door to Central Park and the Natural History Museum!





We already have reservations for the Comedy Cellar, are looking into tickets for "Tony n Tina's Wedding" and have put in a request for Daily Show tickets. Then there will be the other fun things... a carriage ride through Central Park, going to the top of the Empire State Building, amazing dinners around Manhattan. I. Cannot. Wait.

Secondly, I've finally decided against a veil. But I want to do something with my hair! My hair is a bit above shoulder length, plus I usually have side swept bangs. (Right now they're a little grown out. I so need a haircut.) I've been looking at cute headbands to wear. Here are some of the ones I've found:

[CLICK PICTURES TO BE TAKEN TO THEIR PAGES ON ETSY]







Third, I've been doing some thinking about the decor for our reception... For reference, here's the main room we will be using. It will not be set up as shown. There will be floor space for dancing, moving about, etc.


It's the top floor of the Fish Market on King Street, in Old Town. (We'll have the other room, as well.)

We're going to have white linens on the tables, of course. And, irony of all ironies, I showed off hanging poms in my last post as examples of decor:

[CLICK PICTURE FOR ETSY SELLING PAGE]



Oh, the irony is that I mentioned that they would not work for a wedding like mine... well, until I decided I wanted them. So we're going to be getting a bunch of them in all red or red and brown to hang from the ceiling.

I also found some inspiration for our wedding centerpieces, which are going to be very simple. The design is based off of this:



This shot is from the wedding of Amber, who has brilliant taste in design and color.

See the cute daisies in the mason jar? Patrick and I decided that we wanted to do something similar. As our colors are red, brown, and white, we're going to do RED Gerbera daisies instead of the pink pictured. In addition, we're going to cluster two or three jars and flowers for each centerpiece.

But we're not just going to do jars. We're going to start collecting jars and unique bottles to cluster at each table, to give it a punch of color.

Hope you're all enjoying your President's Day!