Well, our new TV is set up, and we’ve ordered Rio 3D, which I’m pretty excited about 
and my parents will be here Saturday night, so you know what we’ll be doing…
My hubby’s birthday is this month in 13 days, and I don’t know if we’ll do anything for it other than go out to eat, since the friends we’ve made here we’ve really only met one time, but I would love to throw him a little party for his big 2-5. If I did, it would be a few of his favorite things, sprinkled with pictures from him at every age (his mom would have to help me out with that one). Speaking of, she’s coming up for his birthday, which is a pretty great gift! Last spring she bought me a ticket to Vegas so I could see him (he was training in nothern Arizona, and we met up in Vegas). It was fun, but we’re not much of the “Vegas” types. We just liked the food and the entertainment. We were so tempted to elope, too. I mean… it’s Vegas! Anyway, hopefully we’ll be back in Tejas with our closest friends before his big 3-0! Also, my cousin/bff is turning 22 in 12 days, shoot you two, breaking me down this month!! Guess I’ll get onto my gift-giving board. Doesn’t everyone need some of these?
thank you Urban Outfitters.
I’ve now pinned over 1,100 things to Pinterest, and I started in July. Say what?! That website is fantastic. I have to confess I spent my time last night pinning all my recipes from my bookmarks onto Pinterest, because I figured it would be easier to choose one that way. They all look so delicious.
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Personal life over, commence planning! My parents are trying to find a restaurant in Houston that is suitable for the Rehearsal Dinner. Ideally, this location would be near the location of the wedding/rehearsal, have a private dining room (necessary for speeches and such) and not cost an arm and a leg. That’s about what Maggiano’s is, but the food is never-ending. That would be nice for the big guys Matt (mi hermano) has coming, but I really don’t know how many people would take advantage of that. Anyway, they’re looking for a few alternatives for that, because they like the banquet facilities and all of that, but not the pricetag. Really, it would be nice if they had a comparison from nearby facilities, just to make sure they’re not being ripped off, you know?
There’s Buca di Beppa (oh how I miss thee) but they don’t really have a space that is private. And there’s Carabba’s, but their max capacity is 24 people, and I’d imagine this will be over 30. Cadillac Bar also has the space and decent pricing but it could be comparable to Maggiano’s once you pick everything you want. See, the price for Maggiano’s includes everything: salad, meal, dessert, non-alcoholic beverage (alcohol to be tacked on). The C-Bar would add gratuity, add dessert, add salad, add non-alcoholic drinks… It could really add up.
That is something to be wary of with your caterer. Ask if it includes gratuity (at 15-20% extra, it could make a huge difference) and whether the price they quote you includes a salad and dessert. If you’re planning for your wedding, ask if they’ll cut your cake too, even if your caterer doesn’t make your cake. When you’re considering caterers, be very wary: they may just choose to put a price tag of $15 on one and $23 on another, but what you don’t know is that the $23 caterer offers 3 courses and includes gratuity, but the $15 is just one course and does not cover gratuity. I’ll admit that people in this industry do try to sneak in a few extra bucks; after all, the more you spend, the more they make. That said, make sure you look at a few different options. We ended up going with our preferred caterer, but we investigated others first. They did a good job on the food, but they forgot to serve Austin & I our food (they’ll never live that down). How do you forget the B&G??
I’ll leave you with this tasty recipe for a simple fall drink (made with honey syrup & bubbly!) from this blog to get your weekend started. It would make a great alternative to simple champagne for a toast at a wedding (or just drop some berries in the champagne glass). Enjoy!!
taken from designlovefest.com {click the image to go to her blog}
what you’ll need:
- 1 orange sliced into wedges
- 1 bottle of Champagne or other bubbly(doesn’t need to be the good stuff)
- 1 oz of St. Germain
- 1 oz of honey syrup
first:
you need to make the aforementioned honey syrup:
- heat 1 cup honey and 1 cup water (or other equal parts proportions) in a pan on medium heat, stirring until it simmers then remove from heat. once cooled you can pour it into a container and store in the fridge.
then:
- add 1 oz of the cooled honey syrup to your favorite cocktail glass
- add 1 oz of St. Germain
- squeeze one of the orange wedges into the mixture and plop the wedge into the glass
- top off the glass with Champagne, give it a quick stir and you’re all set.
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I’m off to mourn the rumor that TCU is supposedly joining the Big 12, and not UH. Silly people, just silly.
Happy planning!
E
PS- we get the invites for the shower this week/weekend! $10 says Monday’s blog shows all my focused ideas. I put them on paper and it’s gonna be fabulous.
Tags: birthdays, caterer, honey badger drink, rehearsal dinner
