Where we're (not) at - Part 3: The arch

Should we have an arch for the wedding ceremony or not? 

This is an ongoing debate that boy/man and I haven't yet resolved.

See, we're getting married on a dock, in front of a lake (weather permitting):

Here, specifically. But without the brown chairs.

That's another wedding on the dock. Not ours, obviously.

And we're not sure whether we should add a focal point (i.e. an arch/canopy) or if this will take away from the view.

If we do add an arch, it would have to be a rustic arch, to go with our "rustic chic" theme (which I realize I still haven't told you about - but that day will come). We're thinking either birch trees or other branches, like these:

Birch arch via Exquisite! Event Planning & Design. Perhaps just a tad over the top.

Branch arch via The Knot.com

Another branch arch option via The Knot.com

How the heckles are we supposed to build those things? 

Here's what the branch experts at Nettleton Hollow suggest (well, for the first birch tree arch):

Terra cotta pots filled with concrete and painted white.
(Not loving the duct tape look, though. Or the chipped paint.)

Notice the two birch poles in each pot, to make things sturdier.

I also found this quick and easy tutorial on making a DIY Branch Wedding Arch with curly willow. Apparently sticking the willow stems in sand does the trick. (I don't know if I trust this method. A dock on a lake = windy. And I can just picture the whole arch blowing away into the water during our super emotional vows.) Yeah, no.

And where exactly do we place the arch? On the dock? Will it look too random to have an arch in the middle of a dock? Or maybe we go with boy/man's idea and place it at the edge of the dock, where the grass ends? (And we could do the ceremony there, closer to our guests, with the dock in the background?)

By the way, if it rains, the ceremony will be indoors and the arch will be completely unnecessary. Or will it?

Yeh, so that's the dealio with the arch sitiation. What to do? Scrap it?

Where we're at - Part 2: The venue

Alright, technically this should have come before the photographer/photo booth post, cause it was the first ever wedding-related thing we found. But actually, 3 months after finding the place, we have yet to officially sign a contract. We've made a deposit and we're dealing with the owner lady in good faith, hoping that everything will work out well before our wedding next fall. (It's a small town venue and they aren't good with paperwork... at least that's what I keep telling myself.)

But anyways. The point of this post is to share with you how we came about narrowing down our venue options.

Firstly, we knew we didn't want to do the whole reception hall or hotel ballroom deal because half of our guests are traveling across an ocean, and the other half are driving at least 2 hours to attend our wedding...  

So we didn't want it to feel as if our guests could have seen/attended our wedding in their own hometown.

And a religious wedding ceremony was out of the question because, well, we aren't at all religious.

With that in mind, boy/man and I looked around for interesting, typically Canadian (or even, preferably, Quebecois) venues, that would showcase our love of the outdoors. Ideally, we wanted to get married outside, on the waterfront, but also have an indoor back-up plan in case of rain, as well as having a space for dinner and dancing on-site.

Oh and the budget was also an issue, but that is too complicated to discuss here.

So early on in the search, two separate suggestions pushed us towards log homes as accommodation for our guests.

First, my mom mentioned that a prominent Quebecois celebrity had recently celebrated her wedding in a beautiful luxury boutique hotel in the Laurentians, Hotel Quintessence. This place is absolutely gorgeous... and also absolutely out of our price range. But the image of the hotel's wood and stone facade stuck.

Hotel Quintessence in the fall...
with Mont-Tremblant as a backdrop

We considered Hôtel Sacacomie, located in the Mauricie region, and also beautiful and log-homey. (My family and I have visited on many a snowmobile ride.) But in the end, we discarded it because it obligated the majority of our guests to stay for three nights, and we didn't want to impose this pricey hotel on them. Plus, it was still a hotel, with a ballroom... so not exactly right

Sacacomie... beautiful isn't it?

Then, my future father-in-law mentioned that he had looked at renting log cabins for his next visit to Canada. 

That was what really sparked my search of Quebec log home rentals.

Four "resorts," all located within 2 hours of Montreal, made our shortlist:

1. Blueberry Lake Resort 

The Clubhouse at Blueberry Lake

Pros: Choice of either the main lodge (Clubhouse) or a beautiful rustic barn for the reception. And the ceremony can be held at two different, waterfront areas outside or in the main lodge in case of rain. Guests get to stay in beautiful, luxury log homes, all located near each other.

Cons: The $2000 rental fee, just to reserve either the barn or the lodge. Not much to do outside of the resort. And the resort has its own set caterer and menus.

2. Tremblant Mountain Chalets 

The Sainte-Pie-X church in Lac-Supérieur,
which will be renovated into a reception hall

A log home at Tremblant Mountain Chalets...
where guests would be staying.

Pros: Ceremony can be held outside, on a dock overlooking Lac Supérieur. The reception can be held in the nearby 60s style church, which will soon be renovated into a reception hall with huge windows and a view on the lake. We can bring in our own caterers or use one they suggest. Guests can stay in luxury log homes, located near each other.

Cons: The renovations of the church have not yet been undertaken and may not be finished on time! Plus, it will likely still look like a church.

3. Côté Nord Tremblant 

Log home at Côté Nord Tremblant

Pros: The ceremony can be held outdoors on a dock overlooking Lac Supérieur or indoors in one of the luxury log homes. There is a restaurant on-site, which can host up to 80 people for a sit down meal and dancing. Guests can stay in nearby log homes, all located near each other.

Cons: The restaurant is small and our guest list would be limited.

4. Fiddler Lake Resort 

A log home at Fiddler Lake Resort where guests would stay

Pros: We can do everything ourselves and rent a tent, tables, chairs and have it in the backyard of own of the resort's luxury log homes. Guests can stay in nearby log homes, located near each other. The homes are absolutely beautiful, with their own pool tables and spas.

Cons: We have to do everything ourselves! And that can be very expensive!

In the end, we realized we had to compromise on some aspect of our wishlist with each of these venues, but one seemed to 'fit' better than the others.

So which one did we choose? Well, take a guess.

Learning British: Stiles

Taking a break from wedding talk today for my first ever installment of Learning British, featuring a fun little tidbit about life in the English countryside. Not that I live there... at least not yet. But I went for a visit this past summer to see the boy/man and to finalize my visa and national insurance number and all that other fun paperwork stuff.

So the b/m's moma was going to a conference in Taunton, a cute little town in Somerset (South West England) and she offered to take me with her. I figured while she was conferencing, I could go explore, poke around a shop or two, and take in the fresh country air... or find a café and get a scone and a cuppa tea if it started raining (which it did, of course).

I had about 4 hours to do all of that, so my first stop was the tourist information center, to find out about circular walks - self-guided tours around town and the surrounding countryside. Boy/man's father had been on one of these, and he's not really the hiker type, so I figured I'd be just fine walking in my ballet flats. (Yeah, no. Hunter wellies would have been much better.)

I picked Circular Walk #10 - Cotlake Hill, where, at the climax of the hike, you get a panoramic view of Taunton and the surrounding area from the top of a hill. (You can download my whole walk itinerary here, if you're at all interested in following my little adventure.)

So the walk started out really well - I made my way through the town's beautiful gardens in Vivary Park, where I snapped a few pics of a father and his daughter feeding ducks and a cute older couple walking hand in hand. (Yeah, I was feeling sappy and romantic. That's what newly-engagedness does to you. I'm still working on suppressing that.)

(But seriously, something about older people holding hands always gets to me. I hope B/M and I always holds hand. Ok, see, that sappiness has got to stop.)

Anyways, after Vivary Park, I walked through more residential streets, where I saw some incredibly beautiful old churches and buildings (some dating back to the 13th century). I am amazed that these structures are still standing today. I can't wait to move to England to explore more of this Roman/Saxon history.

Then the walk got complicated. It took me through fields, and walking past cows and ancient trees. Problem is, I hadn't practiced my British countryside vocabulary, like here:

Opposite the Winchester Arms, enter the recreation ground and keep to the left hand hedge until, at the trees in the corner, follow the path down over the stream. Continue across the field, over the weir, then keep the stream to your left until the road is reached.

What the heckles is a weir?

I also didn't realize I had to start counting fields. I was too busy looking around, so I guesstimated:

Turn left, then immediately right to go over the stile. Follow the hedge on the right, and climb over the stile, up the steps and into the next field and bear right. At the top of the hill in the third field, bear right and go through the hedge in the corner to emerge on Cotlake Hill.

And a stile? Seriously? I had NO idea what that could be until I reached this step looking thing near a fence.

Yep, that's a stile.

The view up on Cotlake Hill was well worth it, though, even if my camera's battery died just when I got up there. But it was nice, trust me.

Blissful new beginnings for 2011

Happy, Happy New Year, my dears. 

I wish you all health, happiness, and the motivation and perseverance to accomplish whatever it is you really want. Go for it this year! Make things happen in 2011!! 

(This is a disguised pep talk to myself, btw, but I hope it rubs off on you too!)

A friend just wished me a year of blissful new beginnings (she has a way with words) and it got me thinking about what 2011 has in store for me... and the boy/man... once we make things happen.

So here's my list, written online for all to see, as a kick in the butt for me when my motivation slows: 

1. A new job for the boy/man Done! He starts early Jan 2011!
2. Finishing my master's thesis
3. Moving to England
4. Finding a new job in England
5. Saving up for our first home in England
6. Buying our first home
7. Starting our married lives together

Alright, there are a bunch of other goals and sub-goals I'd love to add here, but I figured I should stick to the biggest few, cause it might get overwhelming otherwise.

Ideally, everything will be crossed off by the end of this year.

OK, no, that doesn't sound very convincing. Let me rephrase. 

Everything will be crossed off by the end of this year. You wait and see.